Family: Mint (Lamiaceae)

Hardy to Zones 6 to 9

(Spike Lavender, Lavandula spica) Native to the mountains of France and Spain.  The leaves are whitish and spatula-shaped.  The multiple flowering stalks are leafless, tall and lithe.  Remains in flower for longer than other lavenders, servicing with its nectar thousands of small butterflies, wasps, bees, and insects unknown.  Yields copious quantities of mellowly aromatic essential oil.  Flowers violet-blue to 3 feet tall. Plants prefer full sun and a dry to mesic, well-drained soil.  Commonly grown in open fields or as landscape plants, mellowing the corners and curbs between buildings, driveways and sidewalks.  They are tough to the sun and should be trimmed back in the fall to prevent large amounts of snow from accumulating on them.   Seed is very hard and will benefit from a brisk scarification on fine sandpaper, followed by sowing on sandy soil in the light, kept moist and cool until germination, which can take 4 to 6 weeks.  Once the seedlings attain a healthy size, transplant them to quarts, grow them on that way for some weeks, with a sharp eye out for snails and slugs, then transplant again up to gallons, always freeing the roots at transplant and using a rich but fast draining mix.   Plant 2 to 3 feet apart.

50 seeds per packet, Certified Organically Grown