The leaves of my Spanish lavender (stoechas) are yellowing; this is my first year growing it down here in SC, can anyone tell me if I should be doing anything, adding some lime maybe? My Munsted and French (dentata) lavenders are browning on their lower branches; should I just let them go until they hopefully come back in the spring? My Provence lavender is still perfect. I can't believe how well they all did throughout the summer, but especially the Provence!
Lavenders hate the humidity and dampness. The drought helped you with them over the summer but now that the rains have come they are unhappy. Give them as much air circulation as possible and have your soil tested before you give them any lime (which they may need but always be sure.)
Down here where it is so muggy the only way I have been able to grow lavender is in a large clay pot up on my deck where there is always a breeze.
We had some high humidity, especially in August, and when they made it thru that, I thought I was home free!!! It was wonderful to finally have rain this past week, but I wondered if that was the problem with my lavenders, and my rosemary too. Thanks Ardesia!
My lavendar did great all summer through the drought, then it rained - a little - and it's almost totally black. :( This has happened before tho, and it came back. Fingers crossed.
Thanks Deb, I feel better now, I won't give up on it!
Thea: Yours doesn't look anywhere near as bad as mine did the time before when it recovered completely. So, yeah - don't give up! :)
I've NEVER been able to grow Lavender in Charleston...and not because I haven't tried! I finally gave in to conventional wisdom (won't do well in this climate), and quit trying. It does great for awhile, then crumps. Too much trouble, when there are so many other plants that DO like our climate. Manning isn't quite as hot/humid as Charleston, but it's close...
I was SO surprised that mine did so well over the summer, because I had read that it wouldn't in this zone. I must've gotten lucky! I saw it growing in a garden in Beaufort last year, our first trip there, and figured if I could do half as well with it, I'd be happy. I'm glad I tried, because I had far better luck than I ever had with it in CT.
See, the drought had some benefits. LOL
great way to look at it, ardesia!!!
Yeah, mine looked great all spring and summer til it started raining again. In past years I kept it in a big clay pot where it didn't get rained on so i could control the amount of water it got and it did fine. This year, since it wasn't raining, I put it in a different spot. Should've brought it under protection when it started to rain a bit. Forgot. Hoping for comeback! :)
If I ever get to 'foolproof", I'll share that, but based on the way I neglected mine this season, it may be a while. :)
Stono: You're right, it would make sense just to not try to force something that's not suited to our climate, but I love a challenge! Stubborn sometimes, too. ;->
Deb
Pete sells many varieties of lavenders at Pete's Herbs. Obviously a lot of us have been trying to find that foolproof one.
My favorite, and the one that did the very best, and has the greatest scent, is the Provence lavender. It's still blooming, and I have to share it with the bees. It was just a baby when I planted it in the spring! I'm still in awe, I've never had one grow this big and full!!!
I know, ardesia...that's where I get them from in my fruitless quest to get one to actually grow! Pete obviously gets them to grow, since every plant I've gotten was a rooted cutting, but he hasn't shared his secret yet. And like Deb, I'm hard headed and stubborn when it comes to growing things, but I didn't even try this year. I know when I'm beaten! I've only gotten ONE plant to the stage of thea611's in 15 years, then it crumped. Rapidly. It was nice while it lasted, but...
Poor guy, bested by a little lavender plant. LOL
One of the gals at Pete's told me to try them in a large clay pot and I have it up on my deck on one of those wrought iron thingies that you set pots in to raise them up. There is plenty of air circulation there and that seems to do the trick for me. However, there were three plants in the pot originally and only one has survived for 3 years now. I also have one in the ground but it is in an area that gets full sun and no irrigation at all - it's bone dry - and the plant has survived for about 2 years.
What's that expression, ardesia, "Life's a female dog, and then you die"? I've tried them in clay pots, plastic pots, and insulated pots, as well as in the ground in various spots.Totally porous potting soil to pure mushroom compost. Tried them in full sun, part sun, and full bright shade. Tried them from a pH of 5.6 to 8.3, in all of the conditions above. Tried different levels of fertilization in both slow release and "shock" treatments. Tried different cultivars under all these conditions. Same result. They crumped. I understand it sounds pretty wimpy to let a plant beat you, but that's what happened... I fought the good fight, but the plant won. Some things just weren't meant to be...
In Columbia, SC: Two years ago this spring I planted the border of our drive and front porch walk way with lavender ("Silver Frost" from purplehaze.com ) and it has done well. Except for three or four plants in one area which have died. I wonder if they got too much water from the irrigation system. There is no other obvious difference in soil, sun, temperature, air.
I like the look and smell of lavender, though I wish by now they would have grown a little taller (they are about one foot high).
