Hello, human gardener. I am your lavender plant. I see you are curious about how to care for me. Pruning is essential for my health and beauty. From my perspective, it is not a chore but a welcome conversation. When done correctly, it helps me channel my energy into producing strong new growth and those fragrant blooms you love. Let me guide you through the process from my point of view.
My growth cycle is key to understanding when to prune. I flower on new, green growth that emerges in spring. If you cut me back too late in the season, you risk cutting into my old, woody parts, which I find very difficult to regenerate from. The perfect time for my main annual prune is just after my first major flowering begins to fade, typically in mid to late summer. This gives me plenty of time to produce a neat, compact mound of new foliage that will harden off before the cold weather arrives, protecting me through winter.
Please be gentle. My stems are tougher than they look. For a precise and clean cut that I can heal from quickly, you will need a sharp pair of bypass secateurs or pruning shears. Avoid anvil-type pruners, as they can crush my delicate stems. For larger, more established plants of mine, you might need a pair of sharp hedging shears to shape the overall mound, but always follow up with secateurs for a more detailed finish. Remember, clean tools prevent the spread of disease, so please wipe them with a disinfectant before you start.
This is the most important part of our interaction. My goal is to remain bushy and avoid becoming leggy and woody. Look for the soft, green, new growth of the current season. Now, trace down the flower stem until you find the first set of small, leafy side shoots (nodes). Your cut should be about one to two inches above this woody, old growth. Please do not cut into the old brown wood itself, as I may not sprout new leaves from there, leaving an unsightly bare spot. You are essentially giving me a haircut, removing about one-third of my current green growth to encourage me to bush out.
After our pruning session, I will be focusing my energy on healing and generating new growth. I do not need much from you, but a little care goes a long way. Please ensure I am in well-draining soil; I despise wet feet. You do not need to fertilize me immediately after pruning; I am a Mediterranean native and thrive in poorer soils. However, a light watering if the weather is very dry will help me settle. By the following spring, you will be rewarded with a denser, more vibrant plant, ready to put on a spectacular show of flowers for you.
