Scratch away a little of the wood towards the bottom stem to see if there is greenery under the wood.

Edna

Okay, I just did. What am I supposed to be looking for? It all looks brown.

Heather

How far did you cut your lavender back, If you cut back into old wood your Lavender might be history, if you scratched the stem and all you see is brown, not green, I'm afraid your Lavender has bit the bullet.

A......

Oops! Yes, Lavendar should only be cut back by 1/3 maximum. However, if planted in the fall, it may not have had time to establish itself before winter set in. Best planted in spring.

One that I have that works really well in colder climates is 'Provence'. I had to try about a gazillion lavendars before I found one that worked for me.

I wait to cut until I start seeing green showing up on the lower leaves, and then I trim back the dead flowering stems and a bit of wood, but not much. This is one plant that truly appreciates reluctance. LOL!

Susan

I know it goes against all wisdom but I have twice cut lavender to the ground with only brown stubs showing and had it come back as strong as ever.

debbie - one of the advantages of living in a zone 9 climate with negligible winters :-) Lavenders in colder zones are an iffy proposition at best.

Even in my very mild zone, it is not recommended to prune back lavenders until new growth is evident in spring and then not beyond where the new growth is showing.

The plants were not that big to begin with. They each came from 4 inch pots. The only amount I trimmed was the flowering bits. I'm going to hold off on shovel pruning them just yet - though I have a feeling you guys are right. I think they are history. Both plants got a fair amount of snow coverage this winter which might have been what did them in.

Maybe instead of planting more lavander I should stick with more Russian sage as that seems to be doing well. Any other ideas on what to plant in a mostly sandy spot?

Heather

Hi Heather,

I would say leave it and see what happens (maybe we can say the rosary over it...lol)...Seriously, I would say see what happens because I had one that looked like the one you are describing and new shoots came up from it in the spring/summer and it was fine.

Estelle

Estelle,
I think I'm going to do just that. I'm still hopefull that something will come of them. The season is still early, right? If not, I'll shovel prune them and start thinking of something else to put in their stead.

H

Maybe I am being overly optimistic, but I think you should wait a bit longer before shovel pruning. It's only the 3rd week of March and maybe the upcoming warm, spring rains and sunshine will revive that lavendar.

I'm in the same boat right now with some Esperanza that I have. Its dry and looks dead, but I am not quite ready to throw in the towel. With temperatures in the mid 70's currently, and some welcome spring rain, I'm giving the esperanza until April 21st to show signs of life.

Yes...I have given a plant a deadline. lol

Marilyn

where I work we cut lavanders back to just sticks ( i had a cow the first time i had to do it) but they come back fine and are ready for sale now. we cut them back in late fall.

heather,

Oh definitely! It's still early. We still have a lot of snow on the ground where I am. I take daily tours to check for melting snow and see if there is any ground showing! :)

it's like torture!

Estelle

Lavendars are a bit testy to grow in my area, and I just hesitate to cut them back to the ground. For one thing, the one cultivar I have has such woody stems at the base, I don't know that I could cut through them easily without damaging the plant itself. I just cut back to green growth as suggested. I think in warmer zones like 8 and further south, they can be cut back more.

'Provence' is a very hardy lavendar, but the one thing that lavendars do require is very, very sharp drainage, and alkaline soil. I don't even water mine during the summer but once or twice, and it does fine. It's kind of like ceananthus. Mine is also planted on a slope where it gets really good drainage. Not much of a slope, but enough that the water runs down and away from the lavendar roots.

When I purchased 'Provence' it was small, in a 4" pot. I planted it in spring, and it grew to 2' tall and wide. Now, it's about 3' tall and wide after 4 years in the ground, so that's about as tall and wide as it gets. It's very fragrant, and the butterflies and bees just love it. It's one of the most frequently visited plants for nectar in my garden.

Sandl - good luck with your plant. I'm originally from SE Kansas, BTW! My family still lives there.

Susan

Hi Heather,

I'll add another note of optimism for you. I've been successfully growing lavender for more than 10 years (still have some of the original plants too!) and I've mistreated them in sooooo many ways!

I usually prune in fall, though if I forget I do it in spring. I find here in zn 4/5 it takes a long time before they show any green at all in spring. I always have those days of anxiety waiting for them to green up, thinking they've had it! Leave your babies for awhile - they might surprise you. And if you are going to replace them (worst case scenario:) maybe try another lavender variety? Susan has suggested 'Provence' (I'm going to look for it too); I've got 'Munstead', among others which I've long since forgotten the name of. I do remember that 'Lady' didn't do so well for me, but you are at least 2 zones warmer, so don't give up.

Good luck - nothing as lovely as lavender in bloom on a warm July morning............

Balsam

"Lavenders in colder zones are an iffy proposition at best."

I grow lavender munstead. I started it from seed many years ago. It has even self-seeded in my garden. I have pruned in the fall, but prefer spring pruning. I just grab a handful and cut back low to the ground...about hmmmm maybe 4 or 5 inches....keep going till it looks like a little bush of twigs. Its very slow to show life in the spring....but by Aug its in full bloom and it just smells wonderful. The bees love it. I have a plant right by my front door.

I read somewhere that you had to prune hard or it would become a leggy shrub, that didn't look very good. So, I have always done just that.

Sierra

Okay, after reading all the posts I'm remaining optimistic. For now, I've got small plant hoops (kinda like peony hoops, but made from cut up tomato cages) around them so no one steps on them. I'm going to try to ignore them until summer gets here.
I'll let you guys know if anything comes of them.

Heather

I definitely think the variety of lavender makes all the difference. I've had no success trying to grow English lavenders ( such as Munstead), because of the heat whereas I have had great luck with mediterranean varieties such as Provence (lavandula intermedia).

I tried everything. Growing Munstead in shade, semi-shade, watering frequently, letting it dry out etc. I had no luck at all. It just withered away.

For your climate, you might want to experiment with both English and mediterranean varieties such as French or Spanish lavender, to see which works better for you.

Marilyn

I live in the middle of Oklahoma. Normally zone 6b/7a - now seems to be changing to zone 7a/7b!

I grow several varieties of Lavender successfully in my zone.

They are:
* Munstead (10 yrs old - Divided several times - Beautiful little plants and flowers. I use the fragrant flowers and leaves for teas, cooking, and baking);
* Province (fragrant w/very long stems -lt. violet flowers. - Big plant. Hardy 3-4 ft. tall) This is the one grown for essential oil and perfumes in Europe;
* Hidcote (a bit shorter stems than Provence, but has the deepest blueviolet, fragrant flowers for herb crafts);
* English Lavender (have one plant that is now 12 years old. 3-4 ft tall);
* Grosso (very long stems and very fragrant. Fat little flower buds and deep blue-violet flowers on the end of the long stems that hold their fragrance longer when dried than the other lavenders I've grown. She is the honeybee magnet 'queen' of all my lavenders) - VERY HARDY 2-1/2 ft tall. They are growing in my Potager up on the hill.

I have grown Lavender Lady several times. It does fairly well if I grow it in a big clay pot and haul it into the greenhouse in the Fall. It is NOT a hardy lavender.

In my zone I would grow it and consider it an annual.

TIP: What to do with your lavender trimmings
Save your woody lavender (or rosemary) trimmings to toss on the Bar-B-Que coals when you broil steaks. It adds a special taste. It's esp. good with lamb or pork.

Good luck with your Lavender Lady plants. I hope they recover for you.

~Annie

Annie,

Ok...I'm jealous. :-) I'm in a warmer zone, but I have to ask, how do you get English lavender to grow for you? My attempts have been disasters. Any tips you could share?

Thanks!
Marilyn

Hi Marilyn,

I just bought some at a home and garden show in Tulsa one year and planted them in theherb garden up on the hill. Then began dividing them that summer and the next until I had 30 English lavender plants by the end of the next year. I now only have the one left. It is a grandpappy old plant - about 3 1/2' tall X 3' wide, with lots of twisted and gnarly wood, but it still flowers every year. I thought surely it died this past winter. It looked dead, but new green leaves are coming out on those old gray stems. In my experience growing them, Engl. Lavenders do NOT like to be pruned like the other Lavenders. Just keep dividing them and taking cuttings to start new plants.
They do not like good soil nor do they like mulches, and they do not like their feet in water.
I need to buy some more in April at the Herb Fest in Sand Springs.
I live in the Tall Prairie region where it changes over to Oaks and other native trees. I have very sandy soil. I live high up on the hillside of a high ridge, facing the southwest. For the most part, I get nice breezes all summer.
I never once even considered that I couldn't grow them here.
I've always grown them wherever I lived, except while in Louisiana.
BTW, I still plan to send you some Tidy Tips seeds. I didn't plant them last year. We had that horrible 2nd year of drought, high temps and the wildfires and I had health issues. The smoke hung in the air all summer long and some days it was so bad I just didn't go outside. I could smell it in the house some days. It made me even sicker. I had to cut back my gardening big time and there were days when I couldn't go out for all the smoke in the air and DUST. Ugh! This year I am gardening again and back to planting more flowers again. Yippee!
I planted the Tidy Tips seeds with some California Poppies (both native to Calif.) in the front yard where it is hot and dry in summer. They like those conditions. With all the rain we've gotten, they are up and really growing! I am so thrilled! I should have gobs of seeds to send to you if they all survive and we keep getting nice soaker rain like we are getting right now. I know they will grow for you in the DFW area. I just want you to know that I never forgot you. I even kept your envelope so I could send you the seeds like I promised.
Hope your Esperanza is doing better. They are so beautiful.
~Annie

Slightly off topic, but can anyone tell me the variety of lavender we see in the Provence lavender fields? The French call it lavandin. Is that lavandula intermedia? I have always wondered when I gaze at these breathtaking shots.

Eduarda

Annie,

Thanks for the encouraging words and good advice. I'll make a mental note about not pruning them, and also about dividing and taking cuttings. I'm really hopeful about having a nice selection of lavenders this year.

Please don't worry about the seeds. I realize you faced many obstacles last year. I've got my fingers crossed that this year none of us faces drought and wildfires. We have had wonderful, soaking rains, too. It's wonderful, isn't it?

Thanks for thinking of me. Whenever you can harvest seeds, I would love to have some!

Eduarda,

I believe it is lavendula intermedia. I'm attaching a website about a lavender farm in central Texas that was started by a National Geographic photographer who fell in love with the lavender fields in the south of France. I am going to try to visit their farm this year. It sounds beautiful!

Marilyn

Here is a link that might be useful: Hill Country Lavender

It's interesting how all this information gets distributed :-)

First, English lavender isn't English at all - it originated from the Mediterranean area, just like all the other species. It is adapted to a maritime, mediterranean climate which England has - cool summers with low humidity and mild, damp winters. And like all other forms of lavender, it should be cut back at least annually. Not doing so does not increase hardiness but it does allow the plant to become leggy and splay outward, developing that gnarly, woody interior. Like heathers and other woody-based subshrubs, the more regularly it is trimmed, the more compact and dense the plant becomes and with the production of more flowering stems.

The lavender fields of Provence are indeed lavandin, the common name for Lavandula x intermedia, a cross between L. angustifolia and L. latifolia or spike lavender. This hybrid tends to produce tall flower spikes with very high concentrations of essential oils, which makes this type of lavender very important to the perfume industry.

Generally, dividing lavender is a risky situation. Since it is technically considered to be an evergreen shrub (or subshrub) rather than herbaceous perennial, it forms a woody trunk, usually just a single stem emerging from the root crown. And while I'm not saying it cannot be done, division is not a guaranteed successful means of propagation for any woody-based plant. Cuttings are the more accepted means of propagation and are generally the most successful method.

Success in growing lavender outside of its typical climate range is variable. It is more cold hardy than many suspect, with the exception of a few very tender species but it does have certain requirements that will increase winter hardiness - extremely sharp drainage, lean soil (not overly organic) and as much sun as possible. Snow cover during winter is actually an excellent means of winter protection. And I would avoid cutting back too soon and beyond where new growth shows in spring. It is very easy to prune an established lavender too hard and it will generally respond by not growing back well, if at all. Very young plants (typically less than 3 y.o.) can appear to die back to the ground in winter in colder climates, much the same as some other woody-based subshrubs do (caryopteris, petrovskia, etc), but provided the above cultural conditions are met, it will be root hardy and re-emerge in spring.

And if you are wondering why I appear to be such a know-it-all about lavender (lol!!), I did a thesis on it in college and the Pacific Northwest is the largest commercial lavender growing area outside of southern France :-)

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:644374}}