Man, let me tell you about lavender. Everyone says, ‘Oh, it’s so hardy, just stick it in the ground.’ Yeah, right. My first batch? Looked like something the cat dragged in after a few months. I was about ready to give up, thought I just had a black thumb for the stuff. I was poking around, trying all sorts of things, probably overwatering, the usual beginner mistakes I made.
Figuring Out The Food Situation
Then I got to thinking about feeding them. You see all those fancy bottles at the garden center, promising miracles. I almost caved, I really did. My neighbor, old Mrs. Gable, she just chuckled when I mentioned it. Said lavender’s not like those greedy roses that want a three-course meal every week. That got me thinking. Maybe I was trying too hard, you know?
So I started looking into it, not like proper research, just asking around, reading bits here and there on some forums. And the thing that kept coming up was, don’t overdo it with lavender. They’re tough little plants, but they’re picky in their own way. It turns out, the best time, and really the only time you should even think about giving them a bit of a boost, is in the springtime. Just as they’re starting to get going for the season. Makes sense, right? Give ’em a good breakfast to start the day, or the year in this case, that’s what I figured.
And what to feed them? Forget those chemical concoctions. The easiest and, frankly, the best thing I found is just to lay down about an inch of good compost around the plant. I did this last spring. I remember I went out to the shed, grabbed my trusty trowel and the bag of decent compost I’d picked up – not the super fancy stuff, just regular garden compost. Then I just carefully spread it, making sure it was about an inch thick, all around the base of each lavender plant. I was pretty careful not to push it right up against the stems, ’cause I heard that can cause problems like rot. Just a nice little blanket of compost, spread out in a circle.
And that was it. Seriously. No fuss, no muss. I just let that compost do its thing. I watered it in a little bit, just to settle it. And you know what? The plants perked up. They really did. They weren’t suddenly giant prize-winners overnight, but they looked healthier, fuller. More flowers than the previous year, for sure. It was like they finally got what they actually needed, instead of what I thought they needed. I guess Mrs. Gable was right all along. Sometimes less is more, especially with these lavender fellas.
So yeah, that’s my big secret, if you can even call it that. A bit of compost, once a year in spring. I’ve stuck with it, and my lavender’s been pretty happy ever since. Way better than stressing out with all sorts of special feeds and potions. Sometimes the old ways, the simple ways, are the best ways, huh? I learned that the hard way with my first sad-looking plants, but hey, at least I learned it eventually.
