The sight and scent of lavender flowers make a statement in any garden.
The purple flowers add bursts of colour in spring or summer, and fill the air with a relaxing aroma. However, as time passes, the colours fade and the plants start to look… not as great.
Spent flowers will naturally fall off on their own, but there’s one gardening chore you can do to maintain the aesthetic and encourage more flowers – deadheading!
How to deadhead lavender? Wait until after the first flush of flowers, then look for the blooms that have faded. Cut them off further down the stem, a node or two above the woody base.
Keep your semi-shrubs healthy, happy, and humming with life. You could even get new flowers to enjoy a little bit longer!
Is Deadheading Necessary? | When to Deadhead | How Often | When NOT to Deadhead | How to Deadhead Lavender | Deadheading Different Varieties | FAQs
Deadheading vs Pruning
Deadheading is a lighter form of pruning that involves cutting or removing spent flowers and seed heads.
On the other hand, pruning lavender involves cutting back the whole plant to encourage fuller growth. Pruning lavender also helps limit woody growth, prevent disease, and promote air circulation.
Regular pruning is essential for maintaining a healthy plant, but deadheading is less crucial.
Is Deadheading Lavender Necessary?
Deadheading isn’t strictly necessary, but it has its benefits!
The primary purpose of deadheading is to minimise the risk of disease or rot and maintain the plant’s appearance.
Removing faded flowers also helps your lavender plant focus its energy on new growth, instead of producing seeds.
Some varieties – such as English and Spanish lavenders – can even flower more than once after they’ve been deadheaded. These varieties can flower multiple times in a season.
Moreover, deadheading allows you to inspect your plant for any unhealthy stems, tangled growth, or pests.
Still, it won’t hurt your plant if you’re too busy enjoying summer to pinch off any faded blooms!
When to Deadhead Lavender
The best time to deadhead lavender is after the first flush of flowers – typically from late spring through summer (November to February).
But it will also depend on when your lavender blooms!
In Australia, most lavender plants begin flowering in mid-spring to early summer. Lavender flowering season peaks from December to January – so you’ll likely be deadheading during or after this time.
If you want to harvest aromatic lavender sprigs for drying or turning into essential oils, though, it’s best to cut flowers right after they’ve fully bloomed.
You can still deadhead faded flowers for drying lavender, but they might not be as attractive or heavily perfumed.
How Often to Deadhead Lavender Plants
There’s no hard rule on how often you need to deadhead lavender. Once you see your plants are in full flush, check every once in a while for any blooms that have faded.
If you want a really productive lavender plant, you can check for fading flowers once or twice a week so you can promptly remove them.
When NOT to Deadhead Lavender
Sometimes, deadheading lavender can be harmful – not necessarily to the plant, but to its environment!
Lavender is a popular plant among butterflies, bees, and birds. The flowers can provide pollen and nectar, and birds can eat the seeds or use the flowers in their nests.
Deadheading can disrupt the local ecosystem, so if you notice flying friends flocking to your outdoor lavender, consider leaving the flowers to naturally die off.
How to Deadhead Lavender
To deadhead your lavender flowers, you’ll need similar supplies to pruning:
- Pruning shears or secateurs
- Gardening gloves
- Container for spent blooms
Make sure to clean and sharpen the shears before deadheading. You can wash them in soap and water, or disinfect them using rubbing alcohol.
This lets you make clean cuts to minimise the risk of rot and disease.
Try to deadhead a little before you need to water your lavender.
If you grow your lavender as hedges, it’s less effort to just let the flowers fall off naturally.
Then you can prune the hedges in autumn, or get a hedge trimming service to maintain your plants for you!
Deadheading outdoor lavender
When growing lavender in your garden, deadheading old flower heads keeps the plant looking neat and prevents it from going to seed.
Inspect your plants for faded blooms – they’ll lack that vivid purple colour, often beginning to turn yellowish or green.
Check the base for the point where you start to see woody growth. Count one leaf node or set of leaves above that, into the semi-tender stem.
For forked stems, cut one node above the point where the stem splits.
Make a single, clean cut about half a centimetre above the node or leaves. Don’t cut into the woody stems (or old wood) as these will not produce new growth.
Take the flower stem and set it aside, then repeat on the remaining dead flower heads. Leave any healthy flowers and stems to finish growing and blooming.
Deadheading lavender in pots
It’s easier to deadhead indoor lavender since potted plants are smaller and more compact. That means fewer stems to comb through!
The process of deadheading potted lavender is the same – wait until after the first flush of flowers, then inspect the plant for fading blooms.
Follow the stem until you find the woody growth, then count one to two nodes above that. Make a single, clean cut right above the node.
Deadheading Different Lavender Varieties
Different types of lavender also have different flowering times, which will determine when to deadhead your plants.
How to deadhead English lavender
Some varieties of Lavandula angustifolia, such as ‘Hidcote,’ can go through a second flowering after deadheading!
English lavender starts flowering in mid-spring, and can last until early to mid-summer. You’ll likely start deadheading in the summertime.
How to deadhead French lavender
French lavenders (Lavandula dentata) have one of the longest flowering seasons but can be quite temperamental. The plants start flowering in early summer and can last until mid-autumn.
Deadhead French lavender throughout its flowering period, but don’t cut too much as this could hurt your plants.
How to deadhead hybrid lavenders
Hybrid lavender like Lavandin (Lavandula x intermedia) can bloom later than other varieties – often flowering in summer.
Some plants may not get started until early autumn!
Start looking for old flowers in late summer.
How to deadhead Spanish lavender
Spanish lavenders benefit the most from deadheading, as they can flower multiple times in a season.
Some varieties start blooming in late winter, meaning you can start deadheading in early spring. Most varieties flower in spring until late summer.
However, Lavandula stoechas is considered an environmental weed in some states such as Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia. You’ll have to check your local council or state legislation before planting.
FAQs and Tips about Lavender Deadheading
Got more questions about deadheading lavender? Read on for some helpful tips and answers to common questions.
Should I cut the dead flowers off lavender?
It’s not necessary, but cutting off dead flowers (deadheading) can trigger more flowering! It also helps you maintain the appearance of your lavender plants.
However, the old blooms will naturally fall off after the plant has finished blooming.
Does deadheading lavender produce more flowers?
Deadheading or picking lavender flowers can definitely encourage more blooms!
So long as the plant is still in flowering season, it can focus energy on producing more flowers instead of seeds.
Where to cut lavender flowers?
If you’re deadheading lavender, cut flowers further down the stem – about one node or set of leaves above the woody base.
For pruning lavender, take a handful of stems and cut back about one-third the length, or 5-10cm above the new growth.
In both cases, avoid cutting down to the woody part, as you won’t get any new growth.
How do I prune lavender?
Pruning is different from deadheading, and it’s best to prune lavender after the growing season – in autumn (March to April).
Take a handful of stems and cut them back by one-third to one-half the length, or 5-10cm above new growth. Try to cut between leaf nodes, and never cut back to the woody base.
