How to Rejuvenate Woody Lavender Shrubs
Growing lavender doesn't have to be difficult; it's really quite simple. However, without proper care, the plants can become woody over time. Follow along as gardening expert Melissa Strauss explains how to rejuvenate your woody lavender plant so it will bloom again.
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Lavender is one of the most famous scents in the world. Its history of use is so broad that we could talk about it all day. It’s an easy plant to grow and care for, with few needs and a preference for some neglect.
When it comes to care, there are only a few things that you’ll need to worry about. Fertilizer is generally unnecessary. Once established, it will require little additional watering. Poor soil won’t bother your lavender, either, and it’s happiest with a full day of sun exposure. One thing you do need to worry about, though, is pruning.
Pruning is a must if you want to keep your lavender looking healthy, happy, and blooming. It’s vital to maintain an attractive shape and prevent the stems from becoming woody and ultimately breaking off.
Once the woody base expands, creeping up the stems, your lavender will bloom less and become weaker. This will shorten the plant’s lifespan and increase the risk of disease due to a general failing in health.
If your lavender is looking neglected and woody, there are steps you can take to rejuvenate it. It does take some time, and you may not see many flowers for the next couple of years, but eventually, you can bring your plant back to health. Let’s discuss how to prune your lavender to rejuvenate a woody plant and make it look healthy and beautiful again.
Hard Pruning
Before we get to the right method for rejuvenating your lavender, I want to start with what most would call the wrong way: hard pruning. Hard pruning entails cutting the entire plant back to almost nothing above the ground. This works with a few plants (primarily herbaceous types) and is quite effective. However, according to most sources, it’s not recommended for lavender plants.
I’m going to play devil’s advocate here based on my personal experience, and you can take it or leave it. I will certainly go over the process that most sources recommend, as it is the safer bet if you adore that plant and don’t want to take any chances.
Most experts will tell you that cutting into the woody parts of lavender stems will result in a bundle of dead stems. If you think your plant might be nearly dead, you might be willing to take a chance on this method. I’ve done it both ways, and this one is easier.
As long as there are living stems, you can cut your lavender back to nearly ground level. Leave a couple of inches of the living branches intact. I did this to a Spanish lavender plant earlier this spring, and I’m happy to report that there is a healthy amount of new growth. While it may not bloom this year, it is making a comeback, which is more than I hoped for.
As I said, if you are working with an essential plant in a significant position, this isn’t a sure thing, so I wouldn’t chance it. Cutting back to only woody stems often results in no further growth and whole plant death. In my case, I had nothing to lose, and it worked out quite well!
Rejuvenation Pruning
If you’re not into taking chances with your woody lavender plants and want to preserve the overall size and shape of the plant, rejuvenation pruning is my recommendation. Before we discuss timing, I’d like to make a disclaimer that this only works if your plant still has enough green growth to bounce back.
You will be able to improve the overall appearance of the plant and bring it back to a more pleasing shape and density. This will also help improve your lavender’s blooming ability.
Start at the Right Time
The best time to start the rejuvenation process is in the spring, while your plant is in its active growing phase. This is when it will rebound best and give you plenty of new growth to work with.
Before you begin making cuts, give your plant a thorough once-over. Look for signs of green growth among the woody areas. If you notice a green shoot emerging where you didn’t expect one, the regrowth process could be easier and less painful.
In any case, you should start the process in the spring. Then you will repeat it in late summer, and again the following spring. By the end of the second summer, your lavender should look much nicer.
Choose the Right Tools
Lavender stems are fairly thin and tender, even the woody ones won’t require loppers or a saw. With most plants topping out at about three feet tall, those non-woody stems stay fairly thin and flexible.
I like to use a pair of hand pruners to work on my lavender, though a sharp pair of scissors will work in a pinch. Harvesting snips are also effective if you don’t need to cut into the woody parts. Make sure that whatever tool you use is clean and sharp. Clean cuts heal best.
Take Cuttings
You can propagate your lavender easily with softwood cuttings. For this reason, it’s best to wait until you have some new growth so that you can take cuttings. If your parent plant doesn’t survive, this will give you a fresh new plant to start over with.
Cut sections of about four inches, cutting just above the lavender plant’s woody growth. Don’t cut into that wood; leave a few green leaves on the new growth. Remove the leaves from the bottom of your cutting and dip the cut end into rooting hormone.
Fill nursery pots with a well-draining potting mix. The drainage is important because if the soil stays wet, your cuttings are likely to rot. A mixture of potting soil with coarse sand or perlite works well for this purpose. I like to moisten the mixture beforehand to make it easier to work with.
Insert the cut end of your cuttings into the soil about an inch or two, and firm the surrounding soil. Place them in a spot with bright, indirect light and a stable temperature. They grow best between 60-85°F (16-29°C) without extreme fluctuations. They should root and put on new growth in about a month to six weeks.
Trim Back the Right Amount
There are two ways to do this. One takes a bit longer but may result in a healthier plant overall, and you don’t have to risk the entire plant. The other is a faster fix, but you’ll be removing a lot of foliage. It’s really up to you.
Incremental Approach
The first method is to trim all the stems back by about one-third, snipping just the ends off of all branches. Then, choose about one-third of the stems and cut them back to a few inches long, cutting into the woody growth.
The following year, you will repeat the process with one half of the stems that you didn’t cut back in the first year. As you might expect, you cut back the remaining branches in the third year. This is less stressful for the plant, as it’s a gradual rejuvenation, and the plant retains plenty of foliage to take it through the summer.
Rejuvenation Method
If the lavender plant isn’t too far gone regarding woody stems, you can take a more casual approach to pruning. This method will encourage branching and an overall increase in the density of the foliage.
To do this, you’ll cut back all the branches by one-third to one-half, depending on where the green growth begins. With this method, it’s best to avoid cutting into the woody growth, or you risk a complete or partial loss of the plant.
You can cut branches all the way down to the first couple of leaves above the woody sections. This way, those green stems will branch and continue to grow, creating a bushier, fuller appearance.
Repeat in the Fall
In the fall, you have the option of going back over the entire plant and pruning to remove any leftover flowers. This is not imperative, but it may lend itself to a nicer overall shape in the short term. Remove any dead or damaged branches and give the plant a shape.
Make sure to wait until later in the fall to do this, as pruning encourages growth, and that new growth is vulnerable to frost. It’s best to wait until a frost is near. This way, as soon as the weather warms up in the spring, it will get back to growing and put on some weight before you prune again.
Continued Prevention
Once your lavender plant is back to a desirable form, it’s important to maintain it with yearly pruning to prevent it from becoming overly woody again. You should always prune after your plant blooms, removing the spent flowers.
In the spring, you can give it an all-over light trim after removing the dead or damaged foliage. In the fall, prune all the branches back by one-third to one-half, making sure to avoid cutting into that woody growth.
