How to care for lavender
Caring for Lavender in Your Garden
Late August and early September offer the perfect opportunity to start pruning your lavender in preparation for the cooler months. Pruning is essential to keeping lavender healthy and long-lived, and should begin as soon as the flowers start to fade.
Lavender can tolerate a fairly hard prune. We recommend cutting back approximately one third of the plant—not just the flower spikes. This allows light to reach the inner parts of the plant before it enters dormancy in autumn. Proper pruning at this stage keeps your lavender looking neat and encourages strong, bushy growth in the following season.
When spring arrives, you’ll be rewarded with fresh new shoots and a stunning flush of blooms—perfect for attracting bees and butterflies.
Feeding Lavender for Healthier Growth
After pruning, give your lavender a general feed using a balanced fertilizer such as Growmore. Then, as new growth begins in March and April, switch to a high-nitrate feed like Miracle-Gro every three weeks throughout the spring and summer. This type of feed encourages the development of new green shoots and helps prevent the plants from becoming woody and sparse.
Improving Soil for Better Lavender
Lavender thrives best in light, well-drained soil. If you have heavy or clay soil, it’s a good idea to improve it before or during planting by incorporating coarse sand and garden compost. This creates a more open soil structure, ensuring good drainage and mimicking the plant’s natural Mediterranean habitat—ideal for strong root development and healthy growth.
With the right care, your lavender will continue to be a highlight in your garden year after year.
For more advice and tips on how to care for lavender Search our Gardening Advice database
