''Lavandula angustifolia'', formerly ''L. officinalis'', is a

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family (biology), family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle, or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil (herb), ba ...

, native to the Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, Croatia etc.). Its common names include lavender, true lavender and English lavender (though it is not native to England); also garden lavender, common lavender and narrow-leaved lavender.

Description

It is a strongly aromatic

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

growing as high as tall. The

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

are

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

, long, and broad. The flowers are typically purple (lavender-coloured), produced on spikes long at the top of slender, leafless stems long.

Etymology

The

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

name ''angustifolia'' is Latin for "narrow leaf". Previously, it was known as ''Lavandula

officinalis ''Officinalis'', ''officinale'', or occasionally ''officinarum'' is a Medieval Latin epithet denoting organisms—mainly plants—with uses in medicine, herbalism, manufacturing, and cookery. It commonly occurs as a specific epithet, the second t ...

'', referring to its medicinal properties.

Cultivation

English lavender is commonly grown as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...

. It is popular for its colourful flowers, its fragrance, and its ability to survive with low water consumption. It does not grow well in continuously damp soil and may benefit from increased drainage provided by inorganic mulches, such as gravel. It does best in

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

s similar to its native habitat, characterised by wet winters and dry summers. It is fairly tolerant of low temperatures, and is generally considered hardy to

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

zone H6, or

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commerc ...

zone 5.''USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map''
. Retrieved on 2008-05-22. It tolerates acid soils, but favours neutral to

alkaline soils Alkali, or alkaline, soils are clay soils with high pH (greater than 8.5), a poor soil structure and a low infiltration capacity. Often they have a hard calcareous layer at 0.5 to 1 metre depth. Alkali soils owe their unfavorable physico ...

, and in some conditions it may be short-lived.

Cultivars

AGM cultivars

The following

cultivars A cultivar is a kind of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and which retains those traits when propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue cult ...

of ''L. angustifolia'' and its hybrids have gained the

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. It includes the full range of cultivated p ...

:- *''L.'' × ''intermedia'' 'Alba' (large white) *''L. angustifolia'' 'Beechwood Blue' *''L. angustifolia'' 'Hidcote' *''L.'' × ''intermedia'' 'Hidcote Giant' *''L. angustifolia'' 'Imperial Gem' *''L. angustifolia'' ='Clarmo' *''L. angustifolia'' 'Miss Katherine' *''L. angustifolia'' ='Scholmis' *''L. angustifolia'' 'Nana Alba' (dwarf white) *''L.'' × ''intermedia'' ='Downoly' *''L'' × ''chaytoriae'' 'Richard Gray' *''L.'' × ''chaytoriae'' 'Sawyers' *''L.'' × ''intermedia'' 'Sussex'

Dwarf cultivars

Compacta, Folgate, Dwarf Blue, Dwarf White, Hidcote Pink, Hidcote Superior, Munstead, Nana Atropurpurea, Nana Rosea, Sarah, Summerland Supreme, Lady Lavender *'Hidcote Superior', a compact evergreen shrub with fragrant gray-green foliage and deep violet-blue flowers in summer, prefers full sun, well drained soil, low water, hardy to , western Mediterranean species *'Munstead' (syn. Dwarf Munstead, Munstead Blue and Munstead Variety)'' L. angustifolia'' variety, tall, having pink-purple to lavender-blue inflorescences that are slightly fragrant, named after

Munstead Wood Munstead Wood is a Grade I listed house and garden in Munstead Heath, Busbridge, on the boundary of the town of Godalming in Surrey, England, south-east of the town centre. The garden was created by garden designer Gertrude Jekyll, and becam ...

in Surrey, which was the home of

Gertrude Jekyll Gertrude Jekyll ( ; 29 November 1843 – 8 December 1932) was a British Horticulture, horticulturist, garden designer, craftswoman, photographer, writer and artist. She created over 400 gardens in the United Kingdom, Europe and the United Sta ...

*'Sarah', grows to , the flowers are petite, as is the plant, used as a short edging, or as a very fragrant addition to the window box, dark violet flowers *'Lady Lavender', grows to , fragrant, gray-green foliage and lavender-blue flowers in summer, prefers full sun, well-drained soil, low water, hardy to

Semi-dwarf cultivars

Bowles Early, Hidcote Variety, Loddon Blue, Martha Roderick, Jean Davis, Twickle Purple, Pink Perfume *'Hidcote' (syn. Hidcote Variety, Hidcote Blue, Hidcote Purple)'' L. angustifolia'' variety. tall, with silver-gray foliage and deep violet-blue inflorescences, named after

Hidcote Manor Hidcote Manor Garden is a garden in the United Kingdom, located at the village of Hidcote Bartrim, near Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire. It is one of the best-known and most influential Arts and Crafts movement, Arts and Crafts gardens in Br ...

in England as it was cultivated there by Lawrence Johnston *'Jean Davis' tall, up to . A pale pink flowered lavender with exceptionally fruity taste *'Pink Perfume'

Giant cultivars

Alba, Backhouse Purple, Biostos, Bridestowe, Graves, Gray Lady, Gwendolyn Anley, Hidcote Giant, Irene Doyle, Mailette, Middachten *'Hidcote Giant'. A Lavandula × intermedia lavandin. Very vigorous grower () with a lovely strong fragrance. This has large deep lavender-purple flowers on very long stems. *'Vera' . Thought to be the original species lavender, harvested for its oil.

Uses

The flowers and leaves are applied in

herbal medicine Herbal medicine (also called herbalism, phytomedicine or phytotherapy) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. Scientific evidence for the effectiveness of many herbal treatments ...

. Commercially, the plant is used to produce lavender essential oil used in balms, salves, perfumes, cosmetics, and topical applications. Lavender essential oil, when diluted with a carrier oil, is commonly used for

massage therapy Massage is the rubbing or kneading of the body's soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet, or a device. The purpose of massage is generally for the treatment of body stress or pa ...

aromatherapy Aromatherapy is a practice based on the use of aromatic materials, including essential oils and other aroma compounds, with claims for improving psychological well-being. It is used as a complementary therapy or as a form of alternative medic ...

. The flowers are also used as a culinary herb, most often as part of the North American version of the French herb blend called ''

herbes de Provence (; , ) is a mixture of dried herbs considered typical of the Provence region of southeastern France. Formerly simply a descriptive term, commercial blends started to be sold under this name in the 1970s. These blends often contain savory, mar ...

''. ''Lavandula angustifolia'' is included in the

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

n Fire Service's list of low

flammability A combustible material is a material that can burn (i.e., sustain a flame) in air under certain conditions. A material is flammable if it ignites easily at ambient temperatures. In other words, a combustible material ignites with some effort a ...

plants, indicating that it is suitable for growing within a building protection zone.

Subspecies

*''Lavandula angustifolia'' subsp. ''angustifolia'' *''Lavandula angustifolia'' subsp. ''pyrenaica''

Hybrids

''Lavandula'' hybrids are referred to as lavandins. Hybrids between ''L. angustifolia'' and '' L. latifolia'' (spike lavender) are called ''Lavandula'' × ''intermedia''. They bloom later than the ordinary English lavenders.

References

External links

''Lavandula angustifolia'' List of Chemicals (Dr. Duke's Databases)
{{Authority control angustifolia Drought-tolerant plants Flora of Spain Flora of the Pyrenees Garden plants of Europe Herbs Medicinal plants Flora of the Mediterranean basin Plants used in traditional Chinese medicine Taxa named by Philip Miller Flora of Malta