Kate, now that I look at your posting again, I'm not at all sure any cultivar of stoechas will work well for you. This species is not nearly as hardy as the English or lavandin forms and even in my zone 8, it is marginal in a tough winter. It also has a different habit from most other lavenders, being more sprawling and less of a tidy mound. And it is not typically used for fragrance or craft purposes, although it does have a nice scent. The lavandins (Lavandula x intermedia ctvs.) are noted for having very high concentrations of essential oils (hence lots of fragrance) - these are the varieties used most frequently in the perfume trade. Look for 'Provence' or 'Grosso' (aka 'Fat Spike') - they also have the advantage of producing tall flower spikes, good for craft purposes and are heavy bloomers. Personally, I prefer the English lavenders as they tend to be more compact and typically very heavy bloomers with a wide range of colors (from pure white to pink to lavender to a very deep dark purply-blue). English lavenders (Lavandula angustifolia ctvs.) are also the most versatile in terms of being very well scented (good for sachets, potpourri, etc), just drying for bouquets and for culinary purposes. The lavandins are too bitter for cooking.

It's a beauty, and looks like a plant the retail stores are pushing this year, as Home Depot has it too. I wound up planting it in a pot next to my sidewalk and it looks great, and from what I read like it can take the heat we will have later on this summer. Hope the flowers keep coming. They are very showy bobbing in the strong breezes we have had lately.

A patented plant is protected and cannot be legally propagated (by seed or cutting) for sale without having paid the licensing fee. Commercial growers have to pay a royalty for each plant in order to grow and sell them. Incidentally, not only is the plant itself protected by the patent but so is any sport or seedling that may be different from the patented plant. Technically, the genetics of the plant and any mutation is protected. With a trademarked name only the name is protected and not the plant. There are no restrictions on propagating just using that name. Sometimes a plant can be both patented and have a trademarked name. Breeders do go after commercial growers who have illegally propagated their plants. They actually send out people to check growers and nurseries. Mine was inspected this year. And there are always stories in the trades about some grower getting caught. Home growers are safe as long as they propagate for their own use and don't sell the plants. Patented plants will often have p.p.a.f or p.p. somewhere on the label to indicate the restriction.(Plant Patent Applied For; Plant Patent) Daisy is essentially correct about the common us of the names French, Spanish,etc. However, these names have no botanical standing. L. stoechas is sometimes referred to as either Spanish or French. L. x intermedia (lavandin for short and including cultivars such as 'Grosso','Dutch','Provence') are also sometimes referred to as French lavender. To further confuse the issue, "French" Lavender is grown in England and "English" lavender is grown in France. Botanical names (including cultivar name) are the most accurate way to differentiate between plants. Especially when communicating with gardeners who may use different common names where they live. I have found rosemary labelled as lavender at my local HD. So you aren't even guaranteed that you have what you think you have when you buy from them.

Various people have posted the following comments about their experiences with lavender in Georgia: ----------------------------------------------------- English lavender: Zone 7: "it grows ok...... My lavender is 4-5 yrs old and I maybe should have trimmed it back as it has gotten lots of old growth and does not look very full." Zone 7a/b: ...it's been problematic in my garden here. Of the five or six angustifolia [English lavender] varieties I've tried in the past couple of years, three died back, and then off, fairly soon. If planted in the fall, they grew and looked small but nice during the winter, put on a great spring and early summer show, then tended to get sick with the hot humidity of summer. Qualifying them as good annuals anyway. I do still have 'Seal' as a survivor that's actually looking pretty decent after 2 years. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Spanish lavender: Zone 7a: "My Spanish lavender is doing great. In fact, it is just now [June 10, 2002], reaching full bloom and looks just swell. Give it a try." Zone 7: "Neighbor has a Spanish lavender that looks pretty good -- it's about 3 years old. PS -- buy plants as I think the seeds were impossible to do." Zone 7: I have lavender stoechas [listed in Hortiplex as French Lavender] that is doing really well. I can't remember exactly when I bought it, but I think in summer of 2002. Then I moved this year and brought the lavender with me. It has grown and really looks good. I amended the soil with compost and plenty of sand. I don't water it much. It's on a slight slope so probably never gets waterlogged. Zone 7a/b: My Select Seeds catalog just arrived, and I notice it offers seed for a selection of Spanish lavender (stoechas pedunculata) 'Fragrant Butterflies." Lavender is easy to grow from seed, so this would be a good way of getting a nice stand of a type that should do better than most. Zone 7b, South Carolina: I have spanish lavender "otto quasti". It's beautiful and from what I have read very suitable for this area. Zone unknown: "For me, lavender lasts for only about three years, then it's time for a new plant as it gets woody and scruffy. There was someone on my street who had Spanish lavender that lasted longer than that, but eventually they replaced it (with more) after probably about 5 or 6 years." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Provence lavender: Zone 7: "I have had the best luck with Lavender 'Provence'. It has come back beautifully for five summers now and is covered up with blossoms right now [mid June]. Some other varieties just disappeared after two or three years. The bees love it almost as much as I do! I plant all my herbs in raised beds in soil that has been lightened up with mason's sand, vermiculite, compost, Nature's Helper etc....they need good drainage. I almost never water my lavender. It doesn't seem to need it! I get 'Provence' at Pike's and Lost Mountain Nursery on Dallas Highway ( Rte.120). Good luck!" Zone 8b-9a: "I have had good luck with Provence lavender. Maybe not as ornamental as others but long lasting strong scent for harvesting flowers. Makes great potpourri!" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hidcote lavender: Zone 7: "I started 'Hidcote Blue' lavender from seed this year. It germinated slow (a little over two weeks), but all seeds germinated. I planted the seedlings outside in large containers in early May and they are really taking off! Beautiful purple flowers, heavenly fragrance, and very sturdy plants. Hidcote Blue is compact and bushy lavender that is supposed to do well in the South." Zone 7: This fall I planted the Hidcote and have seen some die back where I pruned off a few flowers. This spring I'm going to give it a dose of lime and shear it back like a shrub and hope for the best. Zone 9b (coastal Florida): "I grow these 3 lavenders; Hidcote, munstead , and fernleaf ......The key with lavender is don't improve the soil ; it likes it loose and sandy / good air circulation / infrequent but deep watering- it virtually looks after itself and the lavender sprays are so lovely and longlasting ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Santolina: Zone 7: I have santolina lavender [listed in Hortiplex as santolina; lavender cotton] at my mailbox. It does very well there. Zone 7b: The grey santolina can look horrible until it's a nice size, then it gets 'domey' and if you keep it cut back it stays in the wonderful shape. I found it an excellent replacement for the frustrating to grow here artimesias. I also grow a lot of the green shrubby santolinas. I appreciate their evergreen quality and they look fantastic next to grey foliage plants because their green is such an unusually pure kelly green. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fern Leaf Lavender: Zone 7: I picked up two fern leaf lavender - lavandula pinnata at Lowe's last spring on a lark 'cause they were cheap and attractive. Really surprised at how well they thrived all through the summer. They appeared to have doubled in width and the shoots were probably around two feet. They lasted late into November and then died back. They are supposedly perennial, but we'll see. It sure was pretty for most of the year. I had amended the soil with compost. Zone 7b: I have the fern leaf lavender too. That seems to be one of the easiest to propagate by cuttings in vermiculite. I enjoyed it immensely the 1st year, but the 2nd year I found it growing in all sorts of wonky directions and quite floppy. This is good if you need a flopper so I put it in some raised beds where it looks it's best 'dripping' down over stones. ----------------------------------- Some general comments: Zone 8: "Lavender will tolerate Georgia conditions better in the Atlanta area than in South Georgia. Down here, it does not do well because of the heat. It might do fine for one year, but after that you can kiss it goodbye." Zone 8b, Florida: "I've had L. x intermedia 'Hortensis' doing very well for me here in north Florida for 3 years. It has not bloomed but has wonderful foliage and has stayed small (-------------------------------- General lavender care: Everyone agrees that all types of lavenders need really good drainage. An online article suggested trying your plants in containers at first, until you find a spot in your garden that they will like. The article also said that lavender may not be very long-lived, so you may have to replace your plants every few years.