Lavandula spica Cav.
Hardy sub-shrub with pale grey, downy leaves and terminal spikes of fragrant, tubular, pale grey-blue flowers. To 1.2m. [RHSD, Hortus].
Horticultural & Botanical History
Introduced to Britain in 1568. [JD]. ‘Lavender. Lavendula. It grows about two foot high, the leaves are a light green and the flowers bluish. It grows wild in the southern parts of France and Spain and is planted here in gardens flowering in July. Lavender is esteemed cordial and cephalic, good for all diseases of the head and nerves. It is also good to expel wind from the stomach and bowels, and prevent the collic. Outwardly it is used in warming and strengthening fomentations.’ [Blackwell pl.294/1739].
History at Camden Park
Handwritten note in an 1850 catalogue in the Mitchell Library [MP A2947A] so certainly grown at this time, but it would be very surprising if this plant had not been an early introduction to the gardens.
Notes
Lavandula spica Loisel. (1806) = Lavandula vera DC. but this is today generally regarded as a form of L. spica.
Published Mar 19, 2009 - 05:02 PM | Last updated Mar 22, 2010 - 02:40 PM
Lavandula spica Cav. | Blackwell pl.294/1739 | BHL
| Family | Lamiaceae |
|---|---|
| Category | |
| Region of origin | Mediterranean |
| Synonyms |
|
| Common Name | Common lavender |
| Name in the Camden Park Record | Lavandula spica |
| Confidence level | high |