Gardeners with lavender urged to do 1 task now for better and longer-lasting flowers

Lavender is only just starting to come out of its winter dormancy across UK gardens, and gardening expert Michael Griffiths has shares the essential task to keep plants healthy and prevent woody growth.

Angela Patrone Senior Lifestyle Reporter

00:11, 18 Apr 2026

Gardeners with lavender urged to do 1 task now for better and longer-lasting flowers(Image: mtreasure via Getty Images)

Across gardens throughout the UK, lavender is only just beginning to emerge from its winter dormancy, and in many outdoor spaces it still looks a far cry from its lush summer form. A little thoughtful attention at this stage can make a genuine difference, helping plants maintain their shape and appear purposeful rather than straggly or woody come summertime.

One task gardeners should be tackling with their lavender right now is pruning, particularly if they missed doing so in late summer last year.

Taking to his gardening TikTok account @themichaelgriffiths, Michael advised: “If you missed pruning your lavender in late summer, or it’s looking untidy or frost-damaged, now in mid to late spring, when this new growth appears, is the perfect time to prune.”

Lavender is the most underpruned plant in the UK, with many gardeners reluctant to cut into the brown wood. With this in mind, Michael has shared the “right way” to prune lavender at this point in the season.

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The gardening expert highlighted one golden rule to bear in mind when carrying out this task — you can prune lavender as hard as you like, provided you avoid cutting into old wood and leave some new growth beneath the cutting point.

Michael pointed out that it’s straightforward to distinguish between old wood, which is brown with an almost white foliage, and new growth, which appears as a vivid green at this time of year. The gardener advised pruning just above the old wood, ensuring a small amount of new growth remains intact.

For those who accidentally cut into the old wood, Michael cautioned that the affected area “may not regrow” and “you could lose the plant”, so when in doubt, it’s best to stay above that new growth.

It is also worth bearing in mind that hard pruning your lavender could result in fewer flowers and a delayed blooming season.

Given that UK springs tend to be shorter and cooler, a plant that is hard-pruned in April has limited time to recover before it needs to flower.

As the UK moves into summer, it is well worth deadheading your lavender. Removing the spent flower stalks following the first flush of blooms in late June will encourage a more vigorous second flush in late summer.

While not strictly necessary — as the seed heads are attractive enough to leave in place — for certain varieties, deadheading does make a noticeable difference to the August display.