Common Name: lavandin
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Lamiaceae
Zone: 6 to 9
Height: 1.50 to 2.00 feet
Spread: 2.75 to 3.25 feet
Bloom Time: July to September
Bloom Description: Lavender
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Maintenance: Medium
Suggested Use: Herb
Flower: Showy, Good Cut, Good Dried
Leaf: Fragrant, Evergreen
Tolerate: Rabbit, Deer, Shallow-Rocky Soil
Culture
Grow in average, dry to medium, well-drained, alkaline soil in full sun. Lavandin can be difficult to grow in the St. Louis area, primarily because of winter stresses and high summer humidity. Well-drained soils are required, particularly in winter. Root rot commonly attacks plants grown in poorly drained soils. Prefers a light, sandy soil with somewhat low fertility. Remove faded flowers to promote continued bloom. Prune to shape in spring after new leaves appear. Prune back to 8” every 3 years in spring to control plant size and to promote robust, new growth. High summer humidity in the St. Louis area is not appreciated. To combat high humidity, consider using rock instead of organic mulch. Not reliably winter hardy throughout USDA Zone 5 where it appreciates a sheltered location and winter protection.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Lavandin (L. angustifolia × L. latifolia) is a popular hybrid lavender for the herb garden. Although it is rarely used for culinary purposes, it is frequently used as an aromatic addition to sachets and potpourris. It is a semi-woody plant that typically grows in a shrubby mound to 2-4’ tall. Gray-green leaves (to 2 1/2” long and 1/4” wide) on square stems. Flowers appear in terminal spikes (to 4” long) in summer. Both foliage and flowers are highly aromatic. Leaves are evergreen in warm winter climates. Hybrid cultivars vary somewhat in habit, flower color, aromatic intensity and bloom time.
Genus name comes from the Latin word lavo meaning I wash in reference to a former use of the plant as an aromatic wash.
Hybrid designation means intermediate.
'Fred Boutin' is a hardy, semi-evergreen to evergreen, clump-forming lavandin with fragrant, silver-green foliage and long flowering spikes. The violet-purple to blue flowers are themselves not highly scented, but are still attractive to butterflies and other insect pollinators. The long stalks also make the flowers perfect for cutting and drying. A late season bloomer, 'Fred Boutin' will flower from mid to late summer. Clumps can reach up to 2' tall and spread to just over 3' wide. This selection is named after Fredrick C. Boutin, formerly a botanist at the Huntington Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California who first discovered and cloned the plant.
Problems
Susceptible to leaf spot and root rot. Plants may not survive in winter if soils are not well-drained and/or if temperatures dip below zero degrees without protective snow cover. Deer and rabbits tend to avoid this plant.
Uses
This is a versatile garden perennial that should be considered for a wide variety of uses and not just relegated to a corner of the herb garden. Flowers and gray-green leaves provide mid-summer color and contrast to the perennial border front, rock garden, herb garden or scented garden. Can be particularly effective when massed. Also effective as an edger. Excellent selection for cutting and drying.