Lavandula (Lavanda)

Lavender: more life in your garden

Lavender acts like a magnet to attract honeybees, bumblebees and butterflies. It makes your garden a feast for the eyes! This perennial also has a delightful, calming fragrance. Enough reasons to give this popular plant a spot in your garden.

Lavender in the garden

Fluttering, humming and buzzing: lavender plants will welcome hordes of beneficial insects like honeybees, bumblebees and butterflies to your garden. It’s no wonder that lavender (Lavandula) is listed among the top ten plants for attracting butterflies. For even more butterfly-watching fun, plant lavender along with other butterfly favorites like stonecrop (Sedum) and purpletop vervain (Verbena). What’s more, you’ll be doing your bit for biodiversity. 

Plants for fragrance

Just a whiff of lavender as you pass it by... Remember how pleasant that was? It’s been a favorite for ages; it’s known, for example, that the Romans used lavender flowers to scent their bathwater. For a summery potpourri in your garden, plant lavender along with other fragrant perennials like Salvia, Nepeta (catmint) and Lonicera (honeysuckle). A fragrant border is also nice as a façade garden - certain to make passers-by smile.

A field of lavender

It’s easy to think of lavender as playing a leading role in your planting scheme. Don’t be afraid to plant your entire front garden or borders running along your patio in a single variety. When they flower, you’ll think you’re in the middle of France. For these larger surfaces, choose the rugged Lavandula angustifolia and watch your field of lavender bounce back year after year. Did you know that this plant also secretes substances that discourage aphids? No need to spray when you have lavender on the job!