Growing Lavender in the Southeast



Spanish Lavender



During a cooking weekend at Callaway Gardens years ago, one of the most memorable tastes was a lavender sorbet. I never had tasted lavender in cooking before and was pleasantly surprised.

A quick search on the Internet reveals recipes for this herb in many sweet and savory dishes, including cookies, lemonade, jellies, meat marinades and more, plus the opportunity to purchase lavender flowers for cooking and crafts. Imagine placing small sprigs of lavender flowers in old fashioned ice cube trays, then including a few in a glass of lemonade. Or just tossing a few lavender flowers over fresh fruit. The key seems to be not to overdo, which would be easy with this fragrant herb.

There are almost 30 species of lavender and dozens of varieties just of English lavender (Lavendula angustifolia), the most popular lavender for cooking. This also seems to be the one that is about the least suited for growing in the Southeast. To keep lavender plants happy here you need full sun, good drainage and air circulation.

Lavender is grown as a crop in California and appreciates dry air and soil that is sandy, alkaline and well-drained. Georgia is not California, and I am quite OK with that fact. Those Californians don't have the rhododendrons and camellias we do. Don't expect to grow a lavender hedge in Georgia, but don't give up on growing this wonderful herb either.

The trick to growing lavender here is to find a variety that does well here, keep it pretty dry and provide excellent drainage and air circulation. A raised bed or container would work well for lavender; just combine it with plants that also can take it dry, like lantana, verbena, sedum and daylilies. In the ground, add gravel and maybe a little lime to provide the conditions it prefers. It will not fare well with our humid summers planted in a crowded, irrigated flower border. Last year I planted a lavender test garden which now has 6 plants in a raised bed.

Provence and Spanish lavender are two that seem to do well in this area. In the herb garden of The State Botanical Garden of Georgia, Athens, there are Spanish lavender plants that are as woody as the rosemary plants. Both are beautiful plants that provide fragrant blooms and foliage and edible flowers. Lavender also attracts bees and is thoroughly disgusting to deer.

If you are trying lavender for the first time, I suggest you buy plants from an area nursery. More than likely they have grown lavender for years and know which varieties do best here. Seeds are slow to start and you want to start with just one or two plants anyway.

Lavender has a strong heritage. Ancient Egyptians used lavender in the mummification process and Pilgrims brought it with them to the New World. Lavender has been used for centuries for bathing, laundry and medicine. I like the old treatment of a cordial made from wine steeped in lavender, cinnamon, nutmeg and sandalwood after an "indigestible meal." A friend put dried lavender sprigs in a present she wrapped for me. Open the preset and the fragrance greets you - how charming! I’m going to have to remember that for the hand knit shawls and scarves I am making.

We Could Lose Part of our Garden History.

I first heard about the Farmers and Consumers Market Bulletin during a talk decades ago. My father and I took off in his pickup and traveled from NW Arkansas to visit my brother in Atlanta – of course we timed it so we would be in Atlanta during the Southeastern Flower Show. I don’t remember who the speaker was, just that I was so mesmerized by the charm of this publication that was talked about that I had to buy a copy of Elizabeth Lawrence’s Market Bulletins: Gardening for Love. Her book, her last of many garden manuscripts before her death in 1985, documents the friendships Lawrence made through correspondence initiated by ads in the Market Bulletin. She found out about them from Eudora Welty, who subscribed to market bulletins from several Southern states.


This little newspaper, started in 1917 and distributed by the Georgia Department of Agriculture, is composed of free ads from people throughout the state – ads for home-made items, farm equipment, livestock, fresh eggs, seeds and plants, and more, plus a few articles. As I read the ads I can almost picture the person who wrote it, the one who crocheted the dishcloth, raised the chicks, used the farm equipment no longer needed, or is looking for a position as a farm hand. There’s a country charm that comes through the words.

A couple years ago my husband could not resist that charm when he found an antique butter churn. “Look at the photos they emailed me. It’s just like the one my grandmother used to make butter”. As if that wasn’t enough, he added “I need to find someone with fresh Jersey milk”. Oh dear, we already had set up a chicken coop in the back yard, but churning our own butter? That Saturday we drove an hour, MapQuest printout in hand, to pick up our blue antique butter churn. We ended up chatting with the couple for a solid hour before we even saw the churn in their garage. They were lovely people. I can see why the Market Bulletin opened doors of friendship to Elizabeth Lawrence. It is filled with real people, much richer and more interesting than those in tabloid magazines.

This publication has been a free service, mailed to anyone who requested a copy and I have enjoyed it for years. Unfortunately, the state budget no longer can allow that and so the Bulletin now will be charging $10 for 26 issues mailed to your home. I’m sending in my check today. The subscription information below was copied directly from an article on the Georgia Master Gardeners blog. To read that article: http://georgiamgevents.blogspot.com/2011/04/save-piece-of-georgia-history.html

Subscriptions are available to Georgia residents at a cost of only $10 per year (26 issues); out-of-state-subscriptions are available for $20 per year. Out-of-state subscriptions must be within the United States or its territories.

To start or renew a subscription, send a check or money order payable to Market Bulletin, along with your name, complete mailing address and daytime phone number (in the event the Market Bulletin office needs to contact you concerning your subscription) to the following address: Market Bulletin, Georgia Department of Agriculture, 19 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive SW, Atlanta, GA 30334-4250. New subscribers may also pay online with a credit card at www.thegamarketbulletin.com. Please note there is a $1 convenience fee added for online subscriptions.

2 Great Gardening Weekends in Athens

OK plant nuts, listen up! If you are looking for a road trip or are lucky enough to live nearby, clear your calendars for two special gardening weekends in Athens.


The first is Apriil 9th, when the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, UGA Trial Garden and the UGA Horticulture Club decided to have their plant sales from 8:00am to 2:00pm on the same day – a Plantapolooza! So if you want to find unusual plants, ask horticulturists and Master Gardeners their advice (bring a few photos of your garden – that helps communication), or just feel like celebrating spring by plant shopping, then come to Athens. The State Botanical Garden will emphasize native plants, food crops and Georgia Gold medal winners among their wide selection. Allan Armitage will be leading tours and signing books at the UGA Trial Garden. Find out more about these sales at www.ugatrialgardens.com. If you are a Friend of the State Botanical Garden, you can start shopping Friday night at the preview sale (a few of the best things sell out that night), plus members receive 10% off purchases at the State Botanical Garden sale and in the new gift shop. The Friends of the Garden “Members Only” Preview Sale will be held Friday, April 8, 5:00pm-7:00pm in the Visitor Center & Conservatory. If you aren’t a Friend of the Garden, you can buy a membership outside of the sale that night. That leaves Saturday open to not only shop the other two sales but… (insert drumroll here):

Several area nurseries are offering discounts to people who have been to these three plant sales. The more you shop, the more you save. For visiting one, two or all three of the Plantapalooza sites, you earn 5%, 10% or 15% (respectively) off your total purchase that day at the following participating local retailers. Participants will receive a card which will be stamped at the Botanical Garden, Trial Gardens and Horticulture Club sales.



Cofer’s Home & Garden Showplace

1145 Mitchell Bridge Road

Athens, GA 30606-6411

(706) 353-1519

Store Hours: 9:00am-6:00pm

www.cofers.com



Goodness Grows

332 Elberton Road

Lexington, GA 30648

(706) 743-5055

Store Hours: 9:00am-5:00pm

www.goodnessgrows.com



Thyme After Thyme

550 Athens Road

Winterville, GA 30683-1535

(706) 742-7149

Store Hours: 9:00am-5:00pm

www.thymeafterthyme.com



Thomas Orchards, Greenhouse and Giftshop

6091 Macon Highway

Bishop, GA 30621-1468

(706) 769-5011

Store Hours: 9:00am-6:00pm

www.thomasorchardsandnursery.com



Specialty Ornamentals

3650 Colham Ferry Rd,

Watkinsville, Georgia 30677

(706) 310-0143 ‎

www.specialtyornamentals.com



Eastside Ornamentals

120 Walter Sams Road

(Off Highway 78 East)

Winterville, GA 30683

(706) 543-5500

Store Hours: 9:00am-4:00pm



The following weekend will be a great weekend in Athens for gardeners too. Saturday, April 16th from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm will be The Piedmont Gardeners 18th Annual Garden Tour of Athens. See www.piedmontgardeners.org for photos of the 5 lovely gardens on tour this year. This is a very successful and popular annual garden tour. I’ve been to many of these tours and have always had a wonderful time. I’ve toured two of this year’s gardens and - oh my! – they are amazing – so worth the $20 ticket price ($15 in advance)! Bring a camera, plus paper and pen. Then once you have that list of plants you cannot live without, go back to the nurseries listed above, because Thomas Orchards in Watkinsville, Cofer’s in Athens and Thyme After Thyme in Winterville (maybe more) will have open houses in their nurseries, including specials and Master Gardeners to answer questions.



Athens is a great gardening town. If you feel like taking a breather, stroll the State Botanical Garden of Georgia (www.uga.edu/botgarden) to see Forged from Nature: An Exhibition of Garden Gates. You’ll view amazing sculpted gates by Andrew T. Crawford that are 6’-10’ tall among the many plants in bloom.