How to Grow and Care for Lavender in Containers
Intro: The aromatic lavender plant has beautiful purple-blue flowers and adds height to a container garden. It makes a great companion plant with vegetables and herbs, and it will attract beneficial insects to your garden, including butterflies, bees and other pollinators.
Scientific Name: Lavandula species
Plant Type: Lavender is a flowering plant in the mint family
Light: Full sun
Water: This plant is drought-tolerant and does not tolerate too much water.
Zone: Zones 5 to 8. The lavender flower can be treated as an annual or perennial depending on the zone you live in.
Fertilizer: Lavender doesn’t need a lot of fertilizer, so add a slow-release fertilizer before the active growing period in the spring. You will not need to fertilize the rest of the year unless your potting soil is very poor.
Pests and Diseases: Too much moisture may lead to fungus problems and root rot. Insect pests are generally not a problem, but you may find caterpillars on your lavender plants.
Propagation: Propagate the lavender flower with 2- to 4-inch-long stem cuttings. Cut soft stems and not woody ones for propagation. When propagating a cultivar from seed, the cultivar’s properties will not be the same as the mother lavender plant.
Misc. Info: Prune your lavender plant in late spring or early fall in order to keep it healthy and growing well in your container garden.
This flowering plant likes alkaline soil (but not too alkaline).
