One of my favorite garden flowers is lavender. I can't in fact, think of a single reason not to love it. It's very easy to grow since it's so well suited to our climate. It does well in gardens all over the world, but thrives in our slightly alkaline soil and is very drought tolerant and a sun lover. This easy to grow perennial looks wonderful in a border with other flowers and does great in herb gardens. It also has a nice growth habit and seldom looks messy or unkempt. The fact that it thrives on neglect and has very few problems with pests or disease makes it great for people who don't have a lot of time for fussy plants. Add to that the wonderful fragrance, and how many ways you can use it, and you have an idea why I love it.

Lavendula Angustifolia and Munstead Lavender are commonly known as English Lavender. These are the varieties most used for cooking. The flowers are purple with barrel shaped flower heads. They have a sweeter fragrance than their hybrid cousins and are prized for oils used for aroma therapy and perfume. The dried blossoms are used for cooking, crafting and cosmetics.

Lavendula Intermediale, are the hybrids of Angustifolia and spike lavender. These varieties are hardy but sterile. The will not seed down in the garden but must be started from cuttings. They are more commonly used in soap and detergents because of their more camphorous quality. Varieties include Hidcote, Dutchmill, White Spike, etc.

Another variety is Lavendula Stoechas or Spanish Lavender, including Dark eyes, Silver Frost and Otto Quest. Some of these varieties come in lovely fuchsia purple colors as well as the more common blue purple.

Lavenders use has been documented for over 2,500 years. Used for mummification and perfume by Egyptians, Phoenicians and the people of Arabia. Greeks and Romans bathed in Iavender scented water; in fact the name comes from the Latin word "lavo" meaning to wash.

Queen Elizabeth I valued it as a perfume and as a conserve, she also drank lavender tea. It was used to wash soldier's wounds in WW1, and was used by glove makers to wash their hands because of the antiseptic qualities of the oil.

There are numerous craft ideas on using lavender. It is extremely easy to dry it and make it into potpourri or sachets to scent your closet or drawers. It is supposed to help you sleep if placed under your pillow. And I have seen it made into small decorative wreaths also.

In cooking, it can be used in place of rosemary in most recipes. The spikes or stems can be used for making fruit or shrimp kabobs. It is great used as a garnish, on cakes or ice cream for instance. It has a sweet floral flavor with lemon and citrus notes, but you may wish to use it sparingly until you decide if you like it. Use with fennel, oregano, rosemary, thyme and sage. I like it in vinegar salad dressings.

Do not use if pesticides have been used in that area of the garden.

Garden tip: if you have potted tubs or annual flowers in the garden now is a good time to look at them and pick out the plants that performed the best for you. Get a notebook and jot down your favorites so that you can go and get them next year without searching your memory in vain for their names.

2005-09