English Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia 'Essence Purple') – Evergreen Shrub (2L Pot)

A compact English lavender with deep purple spikes and a strong, clean scent all summer.

'Essence Purple' forms a bushy mound around 40 to 60cm each way, dense enough to use as a low hedge or a path edging and small enough for a patio container. Rich purple spikes stand above narrow grey green leaves from June to August, and both flowers and foliage are aromatic. The flowers can be cut and dried for potpourri or sachets.

It is a magnet for bees and butterflies, so it earns its place in a wildlife or sensory planting. Grow it in full sun in sandy or chalky ground that drains freely, and avoid heavy wet soil. Once established it needs very little water and stands drought and salt wind. Trim the spent stems after flowering to keep it neat, but never cut back into bare old wood. Supplied established in a 2L pot.

Cultural Information

• Common Name: English lavender
• Fully Grown Height and Spread: 40 to 60cm tall by 40 to 60cm wide
• Growth Habit: Compact, bushy, mound forming
• Perfect For: Borders, low hedging, path edging, containers, cottage and Mediterranean planting, rockeries
• Foliage: Narrow, aromatic, grey green and evergreen
• Flowering Time: June to August
• Planting Position: Full sun; tolerates drought and coastal wind once established, and grows well in pots
• Soil Type: Well drained sandy or chalky soil; it dislikes sitting wet
• Hardiness: Fully hardy
• Maintenance: Low. Trim after flowering, never into bare old wood
• Seasonal Interest: Summer
• Type: Evergreen shrub