Product Field NotesLavender Plants
Violet Intrigue Lavender: A Large English Lavender with Silver Leaves
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Violet Intrigue lavender is an English lavender with lavandin-sized ambitions. It grows into an upright, bushy plant about 30 inches tall and three feet wide, with silver-gray foliage and purple flowers that open in early June. That makes it one of the bigger English lavenders, while keeping the sweet, soft, low-camphor scent the group is known for.
It is Lavandula angustifolia 'Violet Intrigue', rated for USDA zones 5a to 8b. If you want a substantial plant but prefer English lavender's earlier bloom and sweeter fragrance over a lavandin's, this is a good fit.
Violet Intrigue at a glance
| Trait | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Botanical name | Lavandula angustifolia 'Violet Intrigue' |
| Flower color | Purple |
| Foliage | Silver-gray |
| Size | About 30 inches tall and 36 inches wide |
| Bloom | Starts early June, peaks mid-June, moderate rebloom |
| Hardiness | USDA zones 5a to 8b |
| Fragrance | Strong, sweet and floral with low camphor |
| Best uses | Backdrop rows, borders, fragrance, essential oil |
Using a large English lavender
Height lets Violet Intrigue do things a compact lavender cannot. Put it at the back of a tiered lavender bed with mid-size and dwarf cultivars in front, and you get a stepped slope of purple. Use it as a soft screen along a sunny patio edge, or plant a single specimen where a small shrub would go. The silver-gray foliage keeps it attractive even outside of bloom.
Because it blooms early, in June, it also pairs well with later lavandins. Plant both and the season stretches from early summer into August.
Planting
- Sun: full sun, six to eight hours or more.
- Soil: sandy, gravelly or well-amended loam that drains fast. Raise beds on clay.
- Spacing: about 36 inches center to center. Bigger plants need more airflow, especially in humid summers.
- Depth: set the crown level with the surrounding soil and keep mulch away from it.
- First season: water deeply whenever the top few inches dry out.
Check your planting window with the Frost Date Estimator.
Pruning a big English lavender
Larger lavenders open up in the middle and go woody faster if they are never cut. After the June bloom, shear off spent stems and about a third of the leafy growth, shaping the plant into a rounded mound. Always leave some green on every stem; English lavender is slow to resprout from bare wood. A moderate second flush often follows. Make the last cut by late summer.
In spring, wait for new growth, then tidy winter-browned tips. English lavender needs winter chill to bloom well, so a cold winter is welcome as long as the roots stay dry.
Harvest and uses
A plant this size gives plenty of stems. Cut for drying on a dry morning when the buds are colored and only a few flowers have opened. Its strong, sweet scent and excellent essential oil suitability make it a good sachet and fragrance lavender. Its culinary rating is great too; for cooking, use food-grown buds and start with a small amount. Bees rate it great, and deer usually pass it by.
Choosing a plant size
It is offered as 3-inch plugs, 4-inch pots and 1-gallon pots. For a backdrop row, gallon pots establish the height faster. See the product page for current sizes and availability, and use Notify Me there if the size you want is not ready.
Frequently asked questions
Is Violet Intrigue an English lavender or a lavandin?
It is an English lavender, Lavandula angustifolia, even though it grows larger than many English types.
How much space does it need?
Plan on about three feet between plants, since it matures to roughly 30 inches tall and 36 inches wide.
When does it bloom?
It starts in early June and peaks around mid-June, with a moderate rebloom after shearing.
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