Other Names:  English Lavender, Common Lavender

Description:

A nicely compact, bushy selection featuring stunning rich purple, long lasting blooms from early to late summer; dense foliage is silvery-green and very aromatic; a perfect choice for edging or massing in the garden

Ornamental Features

Imperial Gem Lavender has masses of beautiful spikes of fragrant lavender flowers with purple overtones rising above the foliage from early to late summer, which emerge from distinctive deep purple flower buds, and which are most effective when planted in groupings. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its attractive fragrant needle-like leaves are grayish green in colour with hints of silver. The foliage often turns coppery-bronze in fall.

Landscape Attributes

Imperial Gem Lavender is a dense multi-stemmed annual with a mounded form. It brings an extremely fine and delicate texture to the garden composition and should be used to full effect.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and can be pruned at anytime. It is a good choice for attracting butterflies to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Imperial Gem Lavender is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Imperial Gem Lavender will grow to be about 15 inches tall at maturity extending to 24 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 18 inches. Its foliage tends to remain dense right to the ground, not requiring facer plants in front. Although it's not a true annual, this slow-growing plant can be expected to behave as an annual in our climate if left outdoors over the winter, usually needing replacement the following year. As such, gardeners should take into consideration that it will perform differently than it would in its native habitat.

This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It prefers dry to average moisture levels with very well-drained soil, and will often die in standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil type, but has a definite preference for alkaline soils, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.

Imperial Gem Lavender is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. It can be used either as 'filler' or as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, depending on the height and form of the other plants used in the container planting. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.