lavender, Niña Purple

latin name: lavandula stoechas ‘nina purple’

zone: 8-10
type: tender perennial
light: full sun or partial shade
height: 12”  (30 cm)

description:   A naturally compact, fragrant and heat-tolerant lavender with lots of small flowers. Perfect for beds, borders and containers. Blooms all summer long. Aromatic. Lavenders are amongst the most popular plants for herb gardens for their subtle coloring and delightful fragrance.  They are rich in essential oils.  
harvest:  cut the flowers in summer just as they open to use fresh or dry.  Dry flowers loose on a flat tray to make small bunches to hang up and dry.  Pick leaves to use fresh or dry before flowering.

culinary notes:  Use leaves and flowers sparingly in cooking.  The flowers are used to flavour sugar for making cookies and cakes. Herbes de Provence (Provençal herbs) is a mixture of dried herbs which includes lavender flowers.  The mixture typically contains savory, fennel, basil, thyme, and lavender flowers and other herbs. Thyme usually dominates the taste produced by the herb mixture.  Herbes de Provence are used to flavour grilled foods such as fish and meat, as well as vegetable stews. The mixture can be added to foods before or during cooking or mixed with cooking oil prior to cooking so as to infuse the flavour into the cooked food.

other notes:  Lavender essential oil had beneficial medicinal applications.  Sprinkle a few drops of lavender oil on bed linen to repel mosquitoes.  Place sachets of dried lavender flowers and leaves with clothes to deter moths.