Phenomenal Lavender

Just about everyone knows the normal lavender plant – you may have been lucky enough to have seen fields of it in Provence, France, or growing in gardens in Italy or California. It’s famous scent finds its way into cushions and clothing drawers as sachets, but for gardeners it is the stunning blue-violet flower spikes on mounds of gray-green foliage that bowl us over. What you may not know is that over half of those famous fields of Provence are not wild lavender at all, but a hybrid plant called ‘Lavandin’. Now you can recreate that look in your own garden with this improved version of Lavandin, which is more compact, more disease-resistant, and in bloom longer than the original. The Phenomenal Lavandin is simply that – phenomenal. It grows across a wide range of zones and forms a dense mound of leaves that is easily trimmed into hedges. The long flower spikes are fragrant and richly-colored, and if you have always wanted to grow this romantic plant, and perhaps been unhappy with other varieties you tried, then this, gardening friends, is the plant you need.

Growing the Phenomenal Lavender

Size and Appearance

The Phenomenal Lavandin is a low, mounding, evergreen shrub growing 2 to 3 feet tall and wide. It has naturally-dense growth, with no dying out in the center that blights many other varieties. The gray-green foliage has a silvery sheen and looks stunning in any garden setting. The leaves are thick, long and slender, about 2 inches long, with a soft, powdery touch and a strong fragrance. This plant is more or less evergreen, with some leaf-drop in winter in cold areas.

In June and July, and often again in fall in hot zones, spikes of blooms grow out above the foliage in profusion. A single bush can easily have 50 or more flower stems. These are about 5 inches long, with the upper 2 inches packed with around 15 small blooms, like irregular trumpets in brilliant violet-blue. These open in succession, and the blooming period is at least 6 weeks. Pick bunches to hang up and dry. The dry flowers can be stripped off and placed in bowls as potpourri or sewn into sachets. Scatter them into your bath for a relaxing soak.

Using the Phenomenal Lavender in Your Garden

The dense mounds of foliage make great corner features for your beds, and of course the classic way to grow the Phenomenal Lavandin is as a low hedge or as a border to a flower or shrub bed. Space plants 18 to 24 inches apart for a dense, continuous row. Grow it among other sun-loving plants on a rocky slope, or plant it beside steps or gates. Grow it in herb gardens or beside a path where you brush past, releasing its captivating fragrance.

Hardiness

This hybrid plant has improved winter hardiness and resistance to rots that cause winter losses. In suitable soil it survives well in zone 5 and it has good humidity resistance too, thriving even in the southeast into zone 9.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Sun, sun and more sun are just what the Phenomenal Lavander thrives on. Plenty of sun will keep the foliage silvery and fragrant, with dense growth and good winter hardiness. Dry, infertile soil is best, with excellent drainage, and avoid any spots where water may lie in winter. This variety has better tolerance of acid soils than others, but lavandin does grow better in neutral to alkaline soils. Sandy soils are excellent for this plant, and avoid overcrowding it among other plants, as this can cause foliage diseases. Out in the open, in full sun and well-drained soil, is the best location. It can also be grown in planters and boxes from zone 6 and warmer. Use a well-drained soil such as cactus soils, or add 25% coarse sand to standard outdoor potting soils.

Maintenance and Pruning

A light trim in spring, either before or immediately after the new growth, is the best care for the Phenomenal Lavandin. If you don’t harvest the flower spikes, a light trim in late summer will remove them and neaten your bushes or hedge. Trim hedges lightly from an early age and avoid heavy trims back into older wood, as this can cause dieback. Pests and diseases are rare and this variety has excellent resistance to the rots (Pythium) that can seriously affect many other types of lavender in winter and in humid summers. This plant is generally avoided by deer and rabbits because of its strong aroma.

History and Origin of the Phenomenal Lavandin

Back in 1972 Pierre Grosso, who lived in the heart of Provence, in the mountain village of Goult, in Vaucluse, created a hybrid plant between the so-called English lavender, Lavandula angustifolia, and the Portuguese lavender, Lavandula latifolia. English lavender in fact grows around the Mediterranean, but it has good cold adaptation, and it is large, reaching as much as 6 feet tall in hot climates. Portuguese lavender actually grows all the way from Portugal to northern Italy, and it has good heat and humidity tolerance. Pierre’s plant combined the best properties of these plants, and with the name ‘Grosso’ it quickly became the dominant variety for commercial growers in Provence. These hybrid plants are called Lavandula x intermedia, or ‘Lavandin’. In 2007 Lloyd Traven, the owner of Peace Tree Farm in Kintnersville, Pennsylvania found a unique plant among a field of ‘Grosso’. It was more compact, with better disease resistance and a longer bloom period. He named it ‘Nikko’ and patented it in 2014. This is the plant called the Phenomenal Lavandin.

Buying the Phenomenal Lavender at the Tree Center

If you hanker after lavender, then the Phenomenal Lavender is what you want. It has all the best properties of this iconic plant, but easier to grow, with a good compact form, profuse blooming and excellent disease resistance. Order that hedge you have always wanted, or a single plant, but do it now, as our supply is limited and we can only sell so many hedges before we are sold out.