[Flowers and ornamentals](https://dunger.ua/en/blog/categories/flowers-and-ornamentals) # When to sow lavender outdoors Published 2026-11-10 Updated 2026-11-10 To read 7 min Choose when to sow English lavender outdoors, prepare a small seedbed and manage slow or uneven emergence before transplanting. You can try sowing English lavender outdoors if you have a sunny, well-drained strip and can check the seedbed regularly. A short nursery row is easier to watch than the full border you plan to plant. These small seeds can germinate slowly and unevenly. Keep some for a second attempt in a container, especially if you need a certain number of plants. ## Choose seed for a small outdoor trial Check the packet for _Lavandula angustifolia_, the botanical name for English lavender. Write down the cultivar and find out if the supplier recommends any preparation for this seed lot. Different species and hybrids can be sold under similar common names. If you collected seed from a plant near other lavender bushes, you may know the mother plant but not where the pollen came from. Even healthy seedlings can differ in height, shape and flower colour. If you want a uniform line beside a path, named plants are a more predictable choice. You can also try [propagating lavender from cuttings](https://dunger.ua/en/blog/propagating-lavender) from a known parent plant. Seed is a good choice if you want to raise a few plants and have time to wait for emergence. Leave the final border spacing until you know how many plants establish. Then see [the guide to planting lavender seedlings](https://dunger.ua/en/blog/planting-lavender) when you plan to move them from a seedbed or container. ## Decide when the seedbed is ready In spring, wait for the ground to warm, lose its sticky surface and drain after rain. Check the local forecast for returning night frost. An exposed strip beside a ditch can remain cooler than a sunny raised bed in the same garden. In southern Ukraine, a warm garden bed may dry quickly in the wind. In a heavier Forest-Steppe garden, the more pressing question after rain can be whether the soil has drained. Watch the chosen strip, not just the air temperature in the forecast. Sowing before winter is a separate trial. If you want to try it, use a short strip under row cover and keep some seed back for spring. An open slope and a low wet spot differ in exposure and drainage, so do not expect the same emergence in both. If your packet recommends a period of moist chilling before spring sowing, use its directions for that seed. Keep any prepared and unprepared portions labelled separately. Do not take the duration from a packet for another species or cultivar. ### Inspect the bed before sowing - Check where direct sun reaches the strip and where rainwater goes. - Lift a little soil. If it remains sticky beneath a dry surface, give it more time. - Remove perennial weed roots and break up large clods while there are no small seedlings to disturb. - Set out row markers, a watering can with a fine rose and spare seed for another attempt. ## Prepare a strip where you can see the seedlings Choose a sunny stretch you can reach from a path. If roof or paving runoff collects there, redirect the water or choose another place first. A raised strip can help where excess water has somewhere to go. Aim for a fine, level surface so water does not wash the seed to one end. Inspect the bed after rain and again when it starts to dry. [Our guide to assessing garden soil](https://dunger.ua/en/blog/soil-assessment-before-fertilizing) explains what to look for when assessing a new part of the garden. If the bed has many weeds, let the first flush appear after preparing it and remove the little weeds from the surface before sowing. Mark both ends of a short row. An unseeded strip beside it can give you a comparison. If the same kind of sprout appears on both sides of the marker, identify it before using a hoe. Working from the path keeps footsteps away from the shallow seeds and makes the edge of the trial easier to see. ### Sow a small portion of your seed - Moisten a dry bed first and let the water soak in. The seed layer should feel damp rather than puddled. - Spread seed along the marked row and follow the depth on the packet. A fine, shallow covering is usual for small lavender seed. - Label the date, cultivar and seed preparation. If you need more water, apply it gently so the seed stays in place. - Keep some seed back in its labelled packet. If you try a second strip, change only one thing such as the location. Changing the date, depth and watering at once makes the result hard to interpret. ### Check an outdoor cover as the weather changes If you decide to protect the trial with a light row cover, secure it where wind will not move the markers or rub the material against young stems. Leave an edge you can lift easily for a quick check. Look again after heavy rain and on warm sunny days. Moisture may persist under cover, and a sunny day can warm the protected air much faster than you expect. Water only after checking the ground. Compare the end of the bed with the middle before deciding whether to open or remove the cover. ## How to manage uneven emergence While you wait, feel the top layer without digging along the whole row. A windy end may need water before the centre does. Moisten it gently and let excess drain. After a heavy shower, look for a hard crust or moved markers. Resist raking where the tiny seeds are sitting. Check an edge, see if water ran through the row, and compare it with the ground in the centre. If conditions still differ, correct what you can before sowing more. The first leaves are seed leaves. The plant develops its more recognizable foliage later. If a new shoot looks unfamiliar, compare it with others along the marked row and in the unseeded strip before removing it. Thin only after you know which seedlings you want to keep. Avoid tugging out a whole crowded group if it might loosen the neighbouring roots. Shallow weeding and a steady hand matter more at this stage than making the row look perfectly even. ### What to record for the next batch Note where seedlings appeared and what the weather had been like. If only a few emerge, keep tending the suitable part and sow your reserve separately if you still need more plants. After cold weather or heavy rain, check the soil and young growth before assuming a nutrition problem. Fertilizer cannot replace a washed-out seed or redirect runoff. For a straight border with few gaps, you can keep the trial for a few plants and fill the rest of the space with rooted stock. Before moving the seedlings, check how much sunlight the permanent bed receives later in the day. A spot under a deciduous tree may be bright in early spring and shaded once its leaves open. Give the seedlings time to become sturdy. If they grew under a cover, get them used to outdoor conditions gradually. Look at winter drainage too. Even an established lavender is vulnerable in soil that stays wet during the colder part of the year. ## Feeding established lavender  ### [Complex fertilizer for lavender, granular](https://dunger.ua/en/mineral-fertilizers/small-packaging/for-landscape-design/complex-fertilizer-for-lavender) Consider the lavender granules once the plants are rooted, there is a reason to feed and the timing matches the full product instructions. Keep the granules out of the seed row. Check the actual area occupied by the established plants and what has already been added to the soil before choosing a pack. Compare the 500 g and 1000 g packs on the product page once you have worked out your needs. The final border and the short nursery row can cover quite different areas. Use the measured area of each planting zone. [Plan areas in My Garden](https://dunger.ua/en/my-garden) ## Questions about sowing lavender outdoors ### Check the directions for your species, cultivar and seed lot. If the packet specifies a method or says the seed is already prepared, use that information. When unsure, keep some seed back rather than treating the whole packet one way. ### ### ## Rate this article No ratings yet. Be the first! Rate this article ## Discussion(0) This discussion is shared across all article languages. 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