If you are searching for Do Lavender need Full Sun, before that let me tell you they are the best growing flowering plant. They have some of the best blooms that come every year and can adjust to climate change situations. Let’s now find out about the Lavender Light requirement.
Do Lavender need Full Sun? Yes, Lavender needs full sun and they don’t like shade. Lavender are fast growing plants which require 6-8 hours of sunlight to produce blooms otherwise shade growth is slower and can impact the plant health. Full Sunlight can make it bushier with a lot of foliage, they are best grown in moist soil and you can provide them fertilizer for its bright flowering.
Most people who live in a cold area couldn’t grow lavender because it requires full sun. But a spot with a minimum of 6 hours direct sunlight would make the plant strong and healthy. For winters you should not water it too much as this makes the root rot a problem. A plant goes dormant and will not wake up until the frost ends. After the freezing cold normalizes and the warm temperature starts, the plant will start to grow foliage and then in the growing month it will bloom again.
Some lavender which are not hardy to cold will not survive, meaning the Spanish and French lavender can be a beautiful gift to nature but they will not grow much in cold areas. Now let’s know about more such questions related to lavender light requirements.
Do Lavender need Full Sun?
Yes, Lavender needs full sun and they don’t like shade. Lavender are fast growing plants which require 6-8 hours of sunlight to produce blooms otherwise shade growth is slower and can impact the plant health. Full Sunlight can make it bushier with a lot of foliage, they are best grown in moist soil and you can provide them fertilizer for its bright flowering.
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Caring for a lavender is easy and the most common problem comes with water so you should take good care of it. Do not input more water which makes it difficult to grow. Lavender is one of the most popular and best looking plants that grows beautifully in full sun.
Can you grow lavender in the shade?
When you grow lavender in the shade it will not grow properly. Lavender needs direct sun that is why they are fast grower flowering plants. If your plant grows in 3-4 hours of light then possibility is it will not grow as much as when they receive over 8 hours of sunlight. It is because the lavenders are always open in open ground so they get full sun, but those growing them in pots or containers have the advantage of changing its location to where it has sun exposure and doesn’t have shade which limits the growth of lavender plants.
The Biggest disadvantage of growing lavender in shade is less blooms or sometimes it doesn’t produce any flowers which is the specialty of lavender plants. They require a lot of sun exposure in its first year and all the years and also if fertilizer the chances of multiple bright blooms increases.
There are so many flowering plants that can grow in shade which includes hydrangeas, fern, pieris, blac lily, pansies and Virginia creeper. I do not add a full list but these plants basically require a lot less light compared to lavender which only need full sun. If you like to grow succulents then they are also some of the best air purifiers that grow in shade and keep growing for many years. Succulents like snake plant, peace lily, areca palm, lucky bamboo are my top favorite plants.
Shade plants always grow slower but it is not the case for vine based plants that produce a lot of vines. Lavender is a flower that comes every year and grows faster that is why they only need a lot of sunlight to grow its blooms or to produce more growth on its leaves then when season comes the flower just gets produced in bulk.
How many hours of sunlight does lavender need?
A lavender plant needs at least 7 to 8 hours of Sunlight that should be direct, not partial. English lavender varieties are more tolerable to colder climates, which is why they keep coming again every year. lavender blooms with multiple flowers and they need a lot of sun exposure to get these blossoms. Many of the lavender varieties do need a lot less light like only 6 hours sunlight but they don’t survive in heavy cold which may freeze the plant and it is unable to get back in spring.
Unfiltered, direct sunlight is one of the aspects to grow lavender successfully. They are grown in containers as well as pots with full sun, and in the ground they see more area to spread and get direct sun to have a full potential to grow and bloom. If you are a beginner gardener then make sure you provide them more than 7 hours of sun and not less that that. Lavender plants are so tolerable because they can survive in poor and fertile soil, the only difference in these 2 soil is one is poor which doesn’t have any nutrients so it won’t produce much blooms but for a good fertile soil it does bloom and produce more flowers in growing months.
Life of the lavender plant will be based on the varieties because some can adjust to frost while some won’t survive till the next season of flowering. Lavender is a fast growing plant due to direct sun exposure and good care. When growing a plant whether it is grown in pot or ground the care is important because when the plant faces a problem and if the owner rectifies it early then plants are saved.
I suggest to everyone that before buying any lavender plant you should be the one that supports the frost damage and can come back next year. If you don’t find that variety then check below, I have given the link.
English Lavender(Hidcote) –
Link 1- Shop Now
Link 2 – Shop Now
Hidcote is one of the best varieties which can tolerate many different climate conditions and are tolerable to winters.
What happens if lavender doesn’t get full sun?
If lavender doesn’t get full sun then it will produce less to no flower blooms. Lavender plant growth may get affected and it cannot grow much in the shade. These plants always require full sun so not finding the light will damage its overall growth and it will not grow faster as it used to be in full sunlight. Some experts believe that the plant may survive in a spot with low light but if completely shade they will not grow and die back. Choosing an English lavender will support your garden after every frost, but if planted in a shade area will make it grow less blooms. Plants may get problems with root rot and fungal infection.
Lavender are beautiful plants they can grow in partial shade as well but not if they don’t receive direct sunlight for hours. They require a minimum of 6 hours sunlight but I suggest giving it more than 7-8 hours which can give lavender a boost in its growing strength.
Where is the best place to plant lavender?
Lavender is the best flowering plant that can be placed in full sun. These lavender plants are planted in pots, containers or gardens. If you have a large garden that is getting a good amount of sunlight then it will be a fine spot for lavender growth. For people who are growing lavender in pots or containers they can move the plant whenever the plant gets full sunlight. An open area which gets sunlight for 8 hours would be a great place to plant lavender.
Lavenders are easy to grow flowering plants, the requirement you will fulfill is to give them water because they are already growing in full sun so they need water very often to get moist soil.
How do you care for an outdoor lavender plant?
Lavender plant outdoor care requires you be plant them in full sun, often giving them water. Lavender also requires good soil fertilizer which is especially made for flowering, you need to pour it for all the outdoor growth. Also choosing a winter hardy lavender variety can save your plant from getting affected. I used good potting mix which is best in drainage and nutrients. I will share all the recommended material required in outdoor lavender plant care.
In outdoor care, your lavender plant shouldn’t get too much water because this affects the plant roots. Only the water is given when the soil is dry, giving water twice in a week would make it cool. But for heavy heat during june-aug months you should be watering the lavender more often.
Pruning your lavender outdoors is another care tip, because they will keep growing and it should be trimmed because that is needed for the plant to get blooms next season. Otherwise it will take more time to get any flower. The pruning in lavender helps to get rid of all the pest infestation and make it clean for next season growth.
Best Soil for Lavender – Shop Now
Best Pruner for Lavender – Shop Now
Best Fertilizer for Lavender plant – Shop Now
How fast does lavender spread?
Lavender spreads up to 5 feet if grown in the ground with the proper care. Lavender are fast growers and people generally pruned them before they spread. The seeds propagation from the spent flower also drops and spreads in the ground but the chances of it growing through seeds is very less.
The seed propagation needs a proper mechanism to grow, and the germination process is slower. Similarly when I talk about stem cutting the growth of lavender is much higher and I advise you to plant them in mid spring. Stem cutting is one of the easiest method to grow lavender faster.
Generally the foliage of lavender spreads good enough to cover the 1-5 feet area. They are not invasive plants so do not worry about how much they spread in the garden or container. Pruning is always an option for people because this way they get to see new blooms next year and avoid any disease on the lavender plants.
Wrap Up
I hope you get the answer on “Do Lavender need Full Sun” and if you like to read more such articles check below.
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