You Can Grow Lavender From Seeds

You can grow lavender indoors from seeds now and then move to pots outdoors in the spring and summer. A pot that can accommodate the root ball with a couple of inches to spare would be a good choice; too large of a pot will only encourage excessive dampness.

Ensure the container has plenty of drainage, and using small rocks at bottom of pot would do the trick. Root rot is one of the few problems experienced by lavender plants. Use a loose, soilless mix for planting and remember that container grown lavender will require more water than garden grown plants. Water when the soil, not the plant, appears dry making sure to water at the base of the plant to limit dampness on the foliage.

In the garden, lavender makes an excellent companion plant for almost anything from roses to cabbage. It is one of those aromatic herbs that deer and rabbits avoid, which makes it a great choice to use as a decoy in your Hosta or Daylily beds.

One of the major reasons lavender is such a prized addition is that the flowers keep their fragrance when dried. For the best drying results, harvest the flowers as the buds first begin to open. Hang in small bunches upside down in a warm spot with good air circulation.

Lavender flowers are also edible, and can be used raw in salads, added to soups and stews, used as a seasoning, baked into cookies and brewed into a health promoting tea.

HERE IS HOW TO START YOUR SEEDS

To begin, your seeds need to be cold stratified by placing them in a sealable plastic bag filled with moist soil. Use commercial soil specially formulated for starting seeds. Place the plastic bag with the soil and seeds inside the refrigerator and allow it to sit for three weeks.

Fill a container with seed starting mix. The seed starting mix should be a light potting mix that drains well, and a plastic seedling tray would be the best to use. Sprinkle the seeds on top of the soil and if using a plastic seedling tray, plant one seed per slot.

Cover the seeds with 1/8 inch (1/3 cm) potting mix. A light coating of potting mix protects the seeds but will also let the seeds have access to sunlight in order to germinate.

Keep the seeds in a warm spot. A heat tray often works best, but another warm location may also work as long as the temperature remains around 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21 degrees Celsius).

Lightly water the seeds and as they grow, keep them medium-moist, but not damp. Water the seeds in the morning so the soil can dry some before evening. Soil that is too damp and cool will invite fungus to grow, and fungus will destroy your seeds.

Lavender seeds can take 2 to 4 weeks to sprout. After they sprout, you should move the container to a location that receives plenty of direct sunlight. If no such location is available, place a fluorescent grow light above the sprouts and allow them to sit in the artificial light for eight hours a day.

You can move your lavender to small pots after they get several sets of leaves. Wait until the leaves are "true leaves," or fully matured. At that point, the root system will have grown too large to continue sitting in the shallow trays.

When making the first transplant, they should be in pots at least 2 inches in diameter and you can also use a potting mix, as well. After plants are 3 inches or taller, you can move them to larger pots, or out to the garden if it is springtime.

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