I Think My Lavender is Dead

Created on 4/18/2009

I enjoy the soft gray evergreen color of Munstead lavender in my potager all winter. It’s the only perennial I have growing in my four raised vegetable beds. I keep it right at the edge on one side of each of the beds. It always forms a nice pale purple, fragrant two foot high allée in the summer. It spills over the wood edge and creates a special place where I set up an outdoor table on the brick walkway in the garden. It’s really a nice complement to the peppers, tomatoes and basil growing next to it.

But now, as I am working in the spring garden, with my pruners in my back pocket, I see just a few wisps of bright green new growth on the plants and the rest is still gray green. It’s not a healthy looking gray green either. It’s more of a gray white. So, I think the Provence fantasy I have been living may be dead too.

Lavender, like many herbs, is native to the Mediterranean so it prefers those climatic conditions- full sun and well drained soil. In fact, herbs like lavender and thyme prefer slightly sandy, alkaline loam soil. Herbs don’t like it rich. Lavender is hardy in zones 5-9 but this winter was exceptionally bitter cold. That and my dastardly heavy soil may have done the plants in this year.

True, I do lose some of my twenty-four plants every year- but I consider it just one of the hazards of the humid Midwest. Lavender is such an outstanding plant, valued for its fragrance and the soft hue of long lasting edible flowers; I’ll replace those I’ve lost.

I do have a plan, before I give up on the plants. I am giving the lavender a good pruning. Lavender should be pruned every year by a third to one half. This prevents the stem from becoming too woody. I am cutting them back by half and selectively pruning out those stems I know are dead. We’ll see if this works.

As I look around the herb garden I see my thyme and winter savory don’t look too good either. This is no problem; it’s just yearly maintenance. These herbs should also be pruned now. Pull back the dead stems and cut them off, down to the green leaves that are now evident. Trim down to the new growth.

Other perennials that are surrounding the kitchen garden should be pruned if they weren’t pruned last fall. Anise hyssop, peonies, coneflowers, black eyed Susan’s, sedum, yarrow and daisies all need a trim before they flower in turn.