How to grow lavender from seeds

If someone happened to see the bright blooming fields of Lavender - this picture with the striking paints of spicy planting will forever remain in memory. A long-term thermal-loving semi-station attracts attention to special aroma and useful characteristics. An adult plant is unpretentious and frost-resistant, it is worth only to choose a variety.

The stalk of the plant begins branching from almost the land itself. Flowers lavender Basically purple color, but there are white, pink and burgundy subspecies. Sometimes the height of the shrub comes to 0.5-1 meters. To grow a lavender from seeds, you will have to work hard. The planting material does not germinate. Therefore, first the seeds are stratified (kept in the refrigerator 1.5-2 months), which increases the germination. A simpler way is to sow lavender in the winter, choosing cold-resistant varieties that are suitable for moderate latitudes. You can purchase a ready-made material, but it is expensive, although there will be flowers on such plants in the first summer season.

In order not to make a mistake in choosing the necessary type of lavender for breeding, read their views and characteristics. All now known varieties are divided into groups:

Ultrasound (English). It looks like elongated spikelets with inflorescences surrounded by narrow leaves. The bush grows to a meter in height. Directly this group is used for breeding in northern latitudes.
Bison (French). Such a plant requires a lot of attention. Saprice seedlings to external factors. Differences: short inflorescences with a variety of shades and wider leaves. Not all flowers of this group have a pleasant smell.
Gear. The varieties of this type of heat-loving, they are often used for growing in pots or on solar beds of southern regions. Lavender toothed is characterized by silvery soft leaves and inflorescences of various blue shades.
Hybrid (Dutch). Such lavender shrubs are large (up to 2 meters). In general, they are derived from uzkolistoy lavender, but the inflorescence larger. Winter plant needs a transplant because of a weak cold hardiness.

Growing lavender seeds - difficult, but exciting experience, thanks to which at the same time a lot of bushes appear on your site. Stratified seeds are soaked overnight in lukewarm water, and the next day are planted in peat pots (can be directly into the soil under the film). Sprouts will appear after two weeks. They need to get stronger and grow before boarding a dedicated place for dwarf shrubs. Plants of the first year, emerged from seed is unlikely to blossom, but will give you a wonderful aroma.

It requires special soil mix for planting seeds. It is better to do it yourself. Take 3 parts garden soil, humus and 1 2 of sand. The mixture is screened. Necessarily it hover or calcined at a temperature of 100 - 120 ° C. But you can simply pour the solution of potassium permanganate. The seeds planted in the prepared container filled with a soil substrate sprinkled sand is sprayed with warm water spray, polyethylene harbor to retain humidity and temperature, and placed in the lighted place. When germination pots with seedlings are placed into the lighted area and gradually zakalivaya seedlings, remove the film. By the end of May the grown plants are thrown on a permanent place.

Lavender prefers alkaline or neutral soils. Before planting, apply fertilizer: compost or sand with humus. A large number of manure and nitrogen in the soil will lead to intensive growth of leaves and flowering decrease.

lavender flower popular in cosmetics and is used to treat diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, stress, neuroses, insomnia. They have proven themselves essential oils of plants. They are rubbed into the skin for the treatment of rheumatism and relaxation.