Lavender, otherwise known as Lavandula, has long spikes of purple-blue flowers which provide colour and fragrance throughout summer and return every year. While lavender doesn’t require much care and attention at the start of summer, there is one task it will benefit from.
Gardeners who have established lavender will have already seen their plants bloom for the first time in June, but there is a way to get them to bloom again this summer, according to Lindsey, otherwise known as @mamanowwhat on TikTok. Lindsey claims that now is the perfect time for gardeners to prune their lavender plants. She captioned her video: “Time to trim the lavender! Every June, we trim our lavender down and by late August, we have more blooms!”
Pruning your lavender bush allows you to maintain a manageable shape and size, but, essentially, it encourages the plant to blossom for longer while preventing woody growth.
Removing faded stems prevents the plant from putting its energy into seed production; instead, it produces more flowers.
Additionally, cutting dead and diseased stems back helps protect the plant from disease and pests.
To prune her lavender, Lindsey started by grabbing some string and tying up the entire lavender plant so the stems were firmly compacted.
She then grabbed a pair of bypass loopers and cut the plant down to the ground, essentially leaving one-third of the plant remaining.
However, many gardeners in the comments section were split on when to trim lavender back.
@heatherjames813 wrote: “Please don’t cut your lavender like this or this early! Leave them til early autumn and always cut into a ball formation to promote healthy growth.”
@Adam Edward Watts: “People, please don’t cut lavender while in full bloom, cut in September. It will still have a scent, bloom, and be darker in colour. Leave at least four to five inches from wood when cutting
@loll wrote: “My mum cuts it super short now and her lavender grows back bigger each year! It’s a monster now.”
@tinachristopher: “I cut mine back mid to end June every year, have nine bushes, they come back bigger every year, love them.”