lavender

[areia]

any suggestions on what im doing wrong i have tried growing lavender plants in pots, when is the best time to cut them back, as i know if they dont get cut back they go all woody and stingy and i want to be able to get more flowers as well whats the best way to get them happy in other words

[whigger]

Best time to cut back is just after the flowers have past their best. Cut back all the dead flower heads and just a little of the leaf leaf growth.

[bluemoon]

Lavender loves rubbish soil, if you've planted them in a good quality compost they might not be happy about it.

[areia]

thanks will repot and give naff soil a try

[rustylady]

Lavender is happiest in open ground, free-draining poorish soil. I've never found it to be very happy in pots. Any pruning should be restricted to cutting back current year's growth after flowering.

[bramble]

One other point, if you keep the plants in pots keep the soil on the dry side as they hate wet soil. I have a lot of pots of lavender and always make sure to mix fine gravel in with the soil so its very free draining.