5 Easy Steps to Propagate Your Own Lavender

Propagate Your Own Lavender

These five easy steps will help you propagate your own lavender. When starting a garden most people, myself included, think that the best way to grow a plant is by seed. Sure you can buy a plant start from your local super store in the spring but the price adds up fast. For most plants the easiest and cheapest way to grow them is to plant them by seed but for some plants this isn’t the way to go.

What is Propagation

Propagation in the plant world is the breeding of specimens of a plant by natural processes from the parent stock. Or in other words taking a piece of stem from the parent plant and getting it to make roots to start another plant.

True To Variety

In the case of Lavender the only way to get a true version of the plant you want to grow is to propagate it. Did you know that there are almost 50 different types of lavender that we know of?! And the way that these varieties stay true is by taking a cutting from the plant and rooting it (aka lavender propagation!) Think of it like parents having children vs. cloning.There are certain lavender varieties that produce more oil, there are some that blossom all season long, and still others that have the most beautiful blossoms or taste better.

So it makes sense that farmers who are selling to oil producers would want a plant that produces the most oil, or if they are selling to restaurants they would want the best culinary lavender etc. This is why we propagate our Lavender. That way we know how best to market and sell to our buyers. Here is how we propagate our lavender at Sweet Olive Farms.

Steps to Propagating Lavender

Step 1

Find a healthy branch without buds or blossoms. As pictured below Cut at least 1 inch into the stiffer bark of the stem. If it is pliable and very easy to bend make sure that you go further down into the plant to get to the branch.

Step 2

Remove all the leaves from the lower inch to two inches of the stem.

Step 3

Once you have your cutting dip the fresh-cut part into a rooting hormone. I like the Take Root brand.

You could also do this with a natural rooting hormone such as Apple Cider Vinegar which has 90 measured elements that are beneficial to plant growth, Honey an anti-bacterial that will help your new cuttings survive, or cinnamon which kills bacteria and fungus. I’ve tried the natural methods and some work better than others. So if you are an organic gardener then choose one of those methods.

Step 4

Place the new cut stem into a Light rooting mix or seed starting soil mix. The tender lavender roots need a light soil that they can push through.

Step 5

Water your little rootlings every few days. They must NOT get dry but don’t drown them either. Just make sure that their soil is nice and moist. This is the cheapest option for adding plants to your garden.

Do you have a perfected method of Propagation? Do you plant your lavender from seed or propagating?SaveSaveSaveSave