Lavender buying help

[Swalrhuni]

I have been on lavender world and am overwhelmed by the choice. I am looking to create an overfull cottage garden look to what is at the moment a completely empty border. I am trying to improve the soil and have been looking in garden centres for plants, not just for the lavender.

I am in Yorkshire if that makes a difference to what is recommended. The border is south/south west facing and gets full sun. I wouldn't say we are exposed but we are certainly not sheltered. Help a newbie out. Dh loves lavender so this will be a lovely surprise for him.

English lavender (angustifolia) is paler and floppier with longer flower stems, whereas Hidcote is more compact with darker flowers. I like Hidcote better as it holds its shape more but angustifolia has a bigger dome and a featherier look so is good in big spaces and for cottage garden planting.

@ElizabethinherGermanGarden that is really helpful thank you.

I have 2 English lavender in a central border where they are in full sun - they have a very informal look about them and other plants grow up into them - I have a red hot poker and Acanthus currently mingling with them and it is a very relaxed vibe. They also self seed freely in the gravel driveway, which is a bonus. Lots of free plants.

Definitely go for an English Lavender - the French Lavender can be temperamental & less hardy.
I've got both Hidcote & Augustifolia - prefer Augustifolia tbh. But also picked up a Twickle Purple this weekend, so interested to see what that is like.

Don't bother improving the soil too much! Or at all, really.not for lavender. Too rich a soil will make it all floppy, and it wants good drainage not beautiful moisture retention,

Isn't definitely full sun or will the plants be reaching for the sun at all? If the latter, consider a compact variety, again so you don't get floppage. Are you wanting wanting 1 variety, or a mixture?

English lavender. You just need to go for whatever is hardiest

I've got Hidcote and another one called Arabian Night which is really lovely. It's quite tall now and the bees absolutely love it. www.rhs.org.uk/plants/110059/lavandula-x-intermedia-arabian-night/details

English lavender (angustifolia) is paler and floppier with longer flower stems, whereas Hidcote is more compact with darker flowers
I've got both Hidcote & Augustifolia - prefer Augustifolia

Hidcote is a simply a variety of Lavendula angustifolia. It’s just a variety noted for its compact growth compared with the wild species and many other varieties of L. angustifolia.

Agree avoid Lavendula stoechas, French lavender, the one with tufts on top. It’s much more fussy about drainage.

I’m in Yorkshire on clay, and have several lavender bushes, at least one of which was here when we moved in 30 years ago.

They do a nice pink one at lavender world

This is absolutely brilliant. Sun wise, dappled until around 10am then full sun until 5pm. The dappling I can't do anything about as I live next to a park so lots of beautiful trees on the boundary.

Re soil improvement it is dry and crumbly so definitely needs sorting out. The bed is empty now as we used to grow some veg in it and then it was left empty for a few years. Drainage is good, it never gets boggy at all despite all the rain we get in Yorkshire. Not complaining because it is so lush and green.

I have a large area to fill, lavender is my starting point, with some tulip bulbs, japonica, with euonymus and photinia toward the back of the bed. I am not very savvy when it comes to gardening. I am looking for fairly easy to maintain. I have a mature mixed plant hedge and mature shrubs so am wanting colour and movement in this part of the garden.

I am wanting a mix so am thinking (all from Lavender World and what they call them) all English lavenders

Angustifolia Hidcote
Angustifolia Twickel Purple
Angustifolia Little Lady

I have the twickle purple and the hidcote one. They have done very well. I also have artic snow which is white.

Am
Excited about a website called lavender world

I planted two English lavenders this year. I took advice from here. I planted with 30% percent horticulture grit and then the rest soil.
Don’t improve ur soil too much they won’t Thankyou for it. I planted mine. Watered them once And then ignored them.