Home » Plants & Animals » Herbal Landscaping » Lavender-the Herb of Choice for Landscaping

Lavender-the Herb of Choice for Landscaping

© Connie Krochmal

Fragrance is big. The sale of candles, aromatherapy products, and other scented items continues to grow without bounds. Among the most popular aromatic herbs is lavender. This fragrant plant is an excellent choice for landscapes. In addition to the scent, it adds a unique beauty to gardens even when it isn't in bloom.

The Spanish or French lavender is somewhat tender. Hardy to USDA zones 7 through 9, this is considered a tender perennial herb in other areas of the U.S. Typically, in cold climates it is treated as an annual, and discarded at the end of the growing season.

This showy species is noted for its extra-long, somewhat wavy bracts. The flowers open at the top of the bracts, which may be in contrasting or matching colors. Around five inches in length, the bracts attract as much attention as the flowers. Several wonderful series of the Spanish lavender is available, including Madrid, Barcelona, Coco, and Chica. The Barcelona lavender series includes ones with white, rose-pink, and purple blooms.

Madrid lavender is especially early flowering, opening a month earlier than most common varieties. This can reach about two to three feet in height, while the Barcelona lavender series is shorter, around one to 1½ feet tall. These normally bloom in early to late spring. Each series includes flowers in a range of colors, including white, blue, reddish-pink, and purple. For example, Midnight Madrid lavender has blue blossoms with white-topped bracts, while with Madrid White lavender both the blooms and bracts are white. Madrid Pink lavender has light pink flowers with bracts in a much darker shade.

The Coco lavender series is noted for its uniform growth habit and appearance. About two feet tall, Coco plants have gray-green foliage, and are noted for their extreme tolerance to summer heat and humidity. These are vigorous plants. The Coco series includes five different colors, including rose, purple, two shades of pink, and a blue/white bicolor.

The Chica lavender series is noted for its dwarf growth habit and smaller blossoms that are about half the size of the species plant. Unlike some lavender plants, these will never need trimming. Around a foot in height, Chica plants are uniform in shape and growth habit. With gray-green foliage, they're covered with masses of blooms. Chica is available in four different colors, including white, rose, light pink, and purple.

Fairy Wings lavender is a particularly attractive variety of Spanish lavender. Around 1½ to two feet in height, it makes a very suitable pot plant. Unlike some varieties, this one has especially large, fluffy, pinkish-purple blossoms that appear larger than the deeper colored bracts underneath. If I had to make a choice, and could choose only one of the tender ones, this is the one I would select.