How Large of a Container for Lavender?

[ButterflyGarden]

I have a lovely new container and I'm thinking of trying to grow lavender. My container is not particularly big. It's about 2 liters, made of wood and has very good drainage. Is this big enough?

[cynthia_h]

How big is the lavender plant?

If you're growing from seed, you'll want to start small, just as with any other seed-starting operation. A 2-liter container would be overwhelming for seedlings.

Maybe more information?

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[ButterflyGarden]

I haven't gotten the plant yet. I was thinking to get a small one from a nursery. The question is will it do well in this size container or will it become root bound and need to be transplanted?

[cynthia_h]

I believe the climate in Israel is similar to that in which I live. Lavender plants do very well in the San Francisco Bay Area; in the ground, they can achieve 4 feet (1.25 m) in width and 3 feet (1 m) in height if not trimmed regularly. That's what mine look like right now. I've seen containerized lavender plants in 3-gallon (13 L) pots, but these were mature plants with main branches--not "trunks" really, but multiple branches coming out of the growing medium--approx. 1.5" (3 cm) in diameter.

A young, small plant will be OK in a 1-gal (2 L) pot for a couple of years, certainly, but will eventually need a somewhat larger container. At that point, you'll most likely be able to keep it trimmed and content in the next larger container.

Cynthia

[ButterflyGarden]

Great! Thanks. We do have a similar climate to CA (I grew up in SoCal) but a little more extreme (I know people on the East Coast of the US will laugh at that). We have hotter, longer summers and slightly cooler winters. Also, in Jerusalem the summer nights can be a drop cooler. There is lots of wild lavender growing in the area. Can I start from a clipping?

I really want to grow the lavender for tea. I was also thinking of putting in some chamomile. The container has two separate parts the same size. Do you know if it would do well there? Also which part do I use for the tea? The leaves or the flowers or both?

[applestar]

I have found that early summer cuttings of lavender's spring growth with some of the semi woody last year's growth roots well.

I used to only save the lavender flowers, but have tried the leaves in tea on recommendations given by members of this forum and found they do impart some of the fragrance. I think there is some bitterness however, though I still need to experiment a little more with blends.

[rainbowgardener]

If you are starting with a cutting or small plant, your two liter container will be fine for awhile. But think about a 2L soda bottle - that's more like half gal than gallon. It's quite a small container. Your lavender will have to be up-potted later to a larger container. But that's ok, people up-pot plants all the time.

But if you meant can two plants share one 2L container, I don't think so. In your climate, the lavender will get huge and the chamomile good sized. It won't take long before they are crowding each other out of such a small container. Give them both a better chance by giving them their own container.

Re the tea (you do like to think ahead, since you don't even have the plants yet! ) chamomile tea is made from the flowers only. Lavender I use only in blends with other things (like the chamomile). I make it from flowers and leaves, but heavy on the flowers. I just use some leaves to stretch it a bit, since it can be hard to have enough lavender flowers. If you are using it for fragrance, not taste (I.e. in pot pourri, sachets, etc) you can stretch it more with more leaves.

[ButterflyGarden]

But if you meant can two plants share one 2L container, I don't think so.

I meant that the container has 2 separate 2L parts, One upper and one lower. I was actually at the nursery today (and I never, ever get there so I just had to take advantage) and they did not have any chamomile. I ended up just buying lavender (I want to experiment with the starter plant vs. a clipping and am thinking of taking a clipping and starting it in a different pot to see how they compare). For now, I think I'm going to put some nice flowers in the other part and I may ask my mother to bring me some chamomile seeds when she comes to visit at the end of June. Any advice on starting chamomile from seeds?

you do like to think ahead, since you don't even have the plants yet!

You know me so well already.