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Planting French Lavender

DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
in Problem solving
Hello,

I have two French lavenders that I would like to plant in my front garden, next to a rose shrub. The soil is clay but the top few inches not so much, they seem to have been improved over the time (by the previous owner probably). It never gets waterlogged in winter or anything of the sort (it is quite sticky in the winter if you want to dig it, but other than that, no water issues as far as I can see).

Do you think they will do well? Don't want to spend much time on this: if it won't work I can leave them in their pots.

Posts

  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    They are not reliably hardy and really dislike wet feet so I wouldn't risk it.   They want a free draining soil really but don't seem fussed about alkalinity etc.

    https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/24039/Lavandula-stoechas/Details


    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    OK I have not even had the time yet to do anything about them. They are still in their pots, and they were looking great when I bought them a couple of weeks ago. Upright flowers and so on.

    That lasted only a few days though , since then they are looking rather sad. Foliage seems OK but the flowers are all just drooping. I watered a bit when it was dry, the last couple of days it rained a lot but still the same. Should I protect them from the rain perhaps if they are overwatered? 
     
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    If they’ve got flowers on them now they must have been forced in a hot house, if you put them outside they’ll be feeling very cold.
    Did you harden them of gradually, they will do better if you bring them indoors for a couple of weeks until this cold spells over. 
    They like hot dry conditions, think of where they come from.
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    They were outside in the GC but what you say makes sense. I'll bring them indoors and gradually acclimatise them, thanks!
  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    This is how they look now.. any hope for them? 
  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    Trying to stick a finger in the soil is impossible: it's rock hard. Is it how it's supposed to be?
  • DedekindDedekind Posts: 172
    OK this is embarrassing. I was trying to harden them off a bit outdoors.. and left them under heavy rain overnight. Everything is now brown except for a little small section of a stem pictured below. 

    Anything I can do to save these? :( 


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