7 Benefits of Growing Lavender

English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) is an excellent way to add a mid-summer pop of color to your garden or patio. We love to plant it somewhere we can enjoy its beautiful scent.  English lavender is more tolerant of colder temperatures common in the Marquette area than French lavender, making it an excellent choice for herb gardens and perennial borders. This member of the mint family features aromatic leaves and flowers that are popular for cooking purposes, medicinal use, and home projects.  The following are just a few of the benefits of adding lavender to your home garden.

1. You Can Use It to Make Tasty Food and Beverages

Lavender is prized as a culinary ingredient. Lemon and lavender make a great combination for baking cookies, cakes, and other delicacies. Lavender can also be used to infuse simple syrups for cocktails or lemonades.

2. It Has a Variety of Health Benefits

Lavender’s lovely scent is known to reduce anxiety and calm the mind. The calming fragrance of a lavender plant is thought to provide relief from stress, depression, and migraines. It is also considered anti-inflammatory and has antiseptic properties.

3. It Is an Excellent Bug Repellant

Like other plants in the mint family, lavender will repel bugs such as mosquitos, fleas, moths, and ticks.

4. Pollinators Love It

Not only is it great at repelling nuisance bugs, but lavender also attracts beneficial pollinators to its fragrant blooms.  Adding lavender to your garden will attract butterflies, bees, and other helpful insects.

5. It’s Deer Resistant

Lavender plants are deer resistant, making them a welcome addition for many homeowners looking for plants they don’t have to share with the local wildlife.

6. You Can Use It to Create DIY Projects

Lavender from your garden can be dried and used to create items such as homemade lavender soap, bath salts, potpourri, sachets, and cleaning products.

7. It’s Easy to Grow

Lavender does well in most climates. The plant is drought resistant and will form a large swath of flowering plants. The blue flowers are not only beautiful but smell fabulous. You can harvest the blooms through the summer and prune the plant back in the fall.

The Flower Works greenhouse in Downtown Marquette is the best place to find herbs, annuals, and perennials that will add beauty to your outdoor gardens and patio space. We have carefully chosen plants that will thrive in our climate.  Stop by our greenhouse to pick up some lavender for your garden, or contact us at (906)- 273-1335 to find out more information about the plants available in our greenhouse.