Breathe in the scent of spring
LAVENDER: FRAGRANT, WATER-WISE, HARDY AND A MAGNET FOR BEES, BUTTERFLIES AND BIRDS
Plant alongside succulents, as a fragrant pathway or a pest-repellent hedge.
There is nothing like the fragrance of flowering lavender to impart that spring feeling. Early flowering stoechas and English lavenders are already coming into flower and they are a magnet for bees.
One of the Spring Festival’s top gardens at Garden World offers some good ideas for combining lavender with succulents and other water-wise flowers.
Designed and built by John Sauer of Ngena Succulents, the platinum awarded water-wise tapestry uses lavender-lined pathways to invite one into the garden, as well as drifts of lavender as a contrast to the bold shapes of agave, senecio and kalanchoe succulents.
The lavender Sauer chose for his mass planting was Lavandula stoechas LaVela dark violet. It provides a mass of large, showy florets (abuzz with bees) on sturdy plants, 38cm tall. In addition to dark violet, LaVela is available in shades of pink and white.
It grows and flowers best in full sun and should not be over watered.
Another showy lavender is Lavandula angustifolia Blue Spear. It is an English lavender with tall, big flower spikes that stand upright and close together so that the impression is of a mass of flowers.
This is a good picking lavender and can be used in pot pourri.
It is easy to grow, also coping with dry heat. It attracts butterflies and nectar-seeking birds.
If grown as a patio plant, place it in a position that receives bright light. It can take morning sun. Let the soil dry out moderately before watering again.
The attraction of English lavender is the strong fragrance and that is the stand-out feature of Lavandula angustifolia Avignon Early Blue.
It is bushy and compact (30cm high and wide) with strong stems that show deeper blue blooms earlier than similar English lavenders.
It is able to tolerate heat better than stoechas varieties.
Cutting off the dead flowers will encourage a new flush.
It grows equally well in pots or garden, as an edging for roses or as a pest-repellent hedge in the vegetable garden.
In a mixed bed, combine with perennials that have similar needs.
Use the flowers to decorate the home or strip them off the stalks and use in cooking and baking.
Daisies are beautiful companions for lavender and succulents and especially Osteospermum, also known as the Cape daisy.
Two new striking varieties are Osteospermum ecklonis Purple Sun and the double-flowered Osteospermum 3D Banana Shake.
Purple Sun’s vibrant orange flowers have a deep purple ring at the centre.
Banana Shake has double flowers, with yellow petals and a raised raspberry red centre that looks like a pompom.
Both are compact and nicely rounded, the plants are eye-catching bedding plants and can be planted with succulents, in containers and in hanging baskets.
They grow in well-composted ordinary garden soil, should receive full sun and regular but not frequent watering.
Once established, plants are fairly drought tolerant.
Fertilise in spring and again in autumn.