Cutting lavender

There are many reasons to give your lavender an annual trim. This semi-shrub tends to turn quite woody with age and new shoots don't form on the woody parts, resulting in parts of the lavender with hardly any flowers or leaves. In the worst-case scenario, your lavender will even split down the middle. If that happens, it's very hard to salvage the plant.

Another reason for regular pruning is to keep the plant in shape – which is particularly handy for smaller lavender plants in containers.

The most important point at which to cut lavender is in spring. The perfect time is before the plant is in bud but after any lasting frost. So, if you're experiencing a long, cold winter, wait a little before you cut it back. During this maintenance cut, you can trim off around two-thirds of this Mediterranean beauty. In so doing, you can remove any parts of the plant that dried out or froze over winter. Cut off these branches just above the ground.

Incidentally, the later a lavender is cut, the later it'll reveal its pretty flowers. In other words, if you've planted it in conjunction with lots of late summer flowers, it can make sense to wait until February's over before cutting your lavender.

Giving your lavender the right cut in summer doesn't just conserve its energies, it also lets it create a good number of new flower heads. Why? Because if you cut the branch just before the flowers die back, your lavender won't expend masses of energy on making seeds. Instead, it can focus on making new flowers. Use your garden shears on particularly long shoots, cutting back the plant by about a third. If you forget to give your lavender its summer trim, you're best off not trying to squeeze it in at a later date, as this is really only an additional maintenance cut. Your lavender needs to be able to form new shoots before the first frost arrives so it doesn't get damaged.

Lavender doesn't just look great – its scented flowers have other benefits, too. On the one hand, lavender has a calming effect, and on the other, its scent repels midges and other insects. Accordingly, this Mediterranean semi-shrub is perfect for use in crafting and creating your own home-made lavender products, such as scented candles. Most sets of instructions start by drying the lavender you'll be using. Ideally, you can pick your lavender for drying in mid-June when some of its flowers have already opened and others are just about to open. To do so, cut the shoots around 10 cm below the flowers. After that, tie the twigs together into a little bouquet and hang them upside down to dry.