Free workshop covers how to grow, harvest and use this popular herb
Lavender prefers a bright, dry spot with relatively poor soil -- and good drainage. Kathy Morrison
Have California gardeners adopted a Mediterranean mindset? Using Google searches as a measure, a study by horticultural guide Gardening Chores concluded that lavender is California’s favorite flower.
Not only is it California’s top searched-for flower, but No. 1 in 41 states plus the District of Columbia, says the report.
Second among searched-for flowers (coupled with the phrase “how to grow”) in California was sunflower, followed by rose, peony and hydrangea.
Why lavender? It’s more than just a pretty flower, explained horticulture expert Amber Noyes, Gardening Chores executive editor, who is based in San Mateo.
“Lavender provides many benefits to the area in which it is grown and can thrive both outdoors and indoors with proper care,” she said in the report’s announcement. “From its widely acknowledged pleasant fragrance to its beautiful violet flowers, it provides a welcoming space for pollinators, and acts as an excellent repellent of nuisance garden insects, such as mosquitoes and ticks.
“With this in mind, it stands to reason that lavender would be the most popular flower in California. It will be particularly interesting to see whether the most-searched-for flowers are also the most frequently grown by those cultivating their gardens this summer.”
A lot of those “how to grow” searches may have come due to struggling lavender plants. Lavender likes a challenge. It’s usually killed by kindness. Instead of rich soil and lots of irrigation, it wants a bright, dry spot with relatively poor soil. It demands good drainage.
Native to the Mediterranean region and drought-tolerant, the lavender genus includes 47 species and more than 450 varieties. Lavender is a favorite with bees and a must for pollinator gardens.
Besides attracting beneficial insects, the flowers have culinary and medicinal uses. Their fragrance promotes relaxation.
Learn more in a free workshop at 9 a.m. Wednesday, June 14, at the Cameron Park Community Center. Presented by the El Dorado County master gardeners, “All About Lavender” is just that – an information-packed three-hour session about how to grow, harvest and use this versatile herb.
Master gardeners Donna Marshall and Muriel Stephenson will teach the lavender basics and a lot more. The class includes how to propagate lavender, and everyone will leave with their own cuttings to root.
No advance registration is necessary. Cameron Park Community Center is located at 2502 Country Club Drive, Cameron Park.
Questions? Email mgeldorado@ucanr.edu.
Details: https://mgeldorado.ucanr.edu/
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Food in My Back Yard Series
June 17: Help pollinators help your garden
June 10: Battling early-season tomato pests
June 3: Make your own compost
May 27: Where are the bees when you need them?
May 20: How to help tomatoes thrive on hot days
May 13: Your plants can tell you more than any calendar can
May 6: Maintain soil moisture with mulch for garden success
April 29: What's (already) wrong with my tomato plants?
April 22: Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)
April 15: Grow culinary herbs in containers
April 8: When to plant summer vegetables
April 1: Don't be fooled by these garden myths
March 25: Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth
March 18: Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space
March 11: Ways to win the fight against weeds
March 4: Potatoes from the garden
Feb. 25: Plant a fruit tree now -- for later
Feb. 18: How to squeeze more food into less space
Feb. 11: When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants
Feb. 4: Starting in seed starting
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Garden Checklist for week of June 22
Mornings this first week of summer will remain comfortably cool – just right for gardening!
* Water early in the morning to cut down on evaporation. Check soil moisture and deep water trees and shrubs. Keep new transplants and veggies evenly moist. Deep water tomatoes to encourage deep roots.
* From seed, plant corn, melons, pumpkins, radishes, squash and sunflowers.
* Plant basil to go with your tomatoes.
* Transplant summer annuals such as petunias, marigolds and zinnias. It’s also a good time to transplant perennial flowers including astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia, salvia and verbena.
* Tie up vines and stake tall plants such as gladiolus and lilies. That gives their heavy flowers some support.
* Dig and divide crowded bulbs after the tops have died down.
* Feed summer flowers with a slow-release fertilizer.
* Mulch, mulch, mulch! This “blanket” keeps moisture in the soil longer and helps your plants cope during hot weather.
* Avoid pot “hot feet.” Place a 1-inch-thick board under container plants sitting on pavement. This little cushion helps insulate them from radiated heat.
* Thin grapes on the vine for bigger, better clusters later this summer.
* Cut back fruit-bearing canes on berries.
* Feed camellias, azaleas and other acid-loving plants. Mulch to conserve moisture and reduce heat stress.
* Cut back Shasta daisies after flowering to encourage a second bloom in the fall.
* Trim off dead flowers from rose bushes to keep them blooming through the summer. Roses also benefit from deep watering and feeding now. A top dressing of aged compost will keep them happy. It feeds as well as keeps roots moist.
* Pinch back chrysanthemums for bushier plants with many more flowers in September.
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