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In my recent backyard (since 1.5 year), I have been clumsy (and lazy). This not so young lavender (Lavandula) was blooming last summer, and I neglected cutting the flowers at the right time. I just let it go. During Fall, I looked at garden for dummies' advices. I tried to pruning branches on "green" parts only, as suggested. And circled it by a wired to keep the shrub straight.

I understood dead branches won't bloom again. I probably pruned too much, this is the present look. The front looks quite dead. It has a lot of rosemary bugs that I handpick, but I cannot blame them, honestly.

Lavander

  • What should I do, and when to revive the plant, and have it grow away from the bottom and not the back and top only?
  • Would one suggest me to leave it a little time, and try for instance propagation by cuttings?
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Laurent Duval
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2 Answers2

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To be honest, I'd have those plants out of there, totally remove them, and plant new ones. Doesn't have to be lavenders if you can't keep up with the maintenance on them, and they may recover a bit anyway, if your weather has been cold during spring as it has here in the UK. So, you can either just wait and see if they put out new growth, if you can stand looking at them as they are, or take them out and replant. Lavenders aren't long term plants really - with correct maintenance, you can keep them going and looking quite good for five years quite easily, sometimes longer if you've been particularly rigorous, pruning correctly and often enough, but after 5-8 years, they're usually replaced because of their refusal to grow from old wood. If you do replace with lavender (I'm assuming its a full sun area, because that's what they like) choose dwarf or smaller varieties.

UPDATED ANSWER

In response to your comment, yes you can certainly take cuttings, they strike quite easily, and you could grow them on and maybe replant with those next year, or even by autumn if they're big enough. Softwood cuttings should be taken within the next month though, link contains propagation info

https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=127

Bamboo
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  • Indeed winter went late. I do not really care about the look, but I love the smell. Would you suggest me to leave it a little time, and try for instance propagation by cuttings? – Laurent Duval May 07 '16 at 12:58
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    yes, you can certainly do that, they strike quite easily from cuttings, and you could grow them on and maybe replant with those next year. Softwood cuttings should be taken within the next month though, link contains propagation info https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=127 – Bamboo May 07 '16 at 13:32
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    Decided I ought to add it to the answer rather than just in a comment... – Bamboo May 07 '16 at 14:03
  • I should have put the cutting question in the OP too – Laurent Duval May 07 '16 at 14:05
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    If you'd added it to the question later, I wouldn't have known about it - people usually ask further questions as a comment, so no worries. – Bamboo May 07 '16 at 14:19
  • On my side, the top cover was way better this year, and some marcottage seems to provide the first positive results. More pictures next summer – Laurent Duval Sep 28 '21 at 15:31
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Dig them up completely and separate the dead from the living. Divide the living plants and replant them. Lavender is very forgiving. Pruning the dead stuff is really the way to go in the future. Once in the fall after they are done blooming, cut them back on top about 1/3 down in a half globe shape. If you have them planted under the eave in the back of a house, it may be too dark for them back there. :)

Catherine R Fuller
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