I've never had anything but wonderful luck with lavender and it is a solid in my top 10 fav plants list. I disagree that it is fussy. I grow it in loamy soil and as long as it isn't sitting in a puddle it will be fine. Where I live we are zone 4 and technically the hardiest lavenders are zone 5, but we get a guaranteed snow cover pretty much all winter long so that effectively ups me to a 5.

I only grow Munstead lavender and honestly I can't think of a single problem I've had with them. They're pest free, the wildlife doesn't care for them and they're long lived with proper care (or the proper amount of neglect).

They do require some pruning so they become bushy and not scraggily. In spring, just as they are beginning to green up, cut them back by 1/3. That is seriously all I do or have ever done for mine. They may benefit from some compost applied around them in fall, as I generally do this to all the gardens regardless.

Give them a try!

I grow Lavender Vera, Munstead, and Grosso. The Lavender Vera and Grosso are both planted in raised beds and doing well. The Munstead is in a shorter raised bed, and I think might be getting some roof runoff, and is therefore not doing so well.

I would say give lavender a try, but if your soil is clay, create some kind of berm or hill to plant the lavender in. Before creating the berm, you also might want to dig out some of the dirt under where the berm will be and mix in some sand to further improve drainage, and then mound up the hill over it, including some more sand in the hill dirt.

The following is Lavender Grosso, which, despite my trimming back to 1 inch above the wood every spring, is getting scraggly. I've lost track of how long I've had it, but it's been at least 6 years. On a warm summer day, I can smell the Grosso from halfway across the yard, and the bumblebees love it.

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I am experimenting with "extreme pruning" on the Lavender Vera and pruning back into the wood in stages. So many sources say never cut back lavender back past the point where the stems get woody, but a few sources say you might be able to do it in stages (cut the outside branches back one year, give them a chance to recover, then cut back the inside branches).

In your zone 6 you could grow many var. of lavender. Here in zone 3 I've successfully grown 'Munstead' only. I started with 3 plants many (7?) years ago and have one left. It never gets very large but flowers late summer. In a warmer climate it should grow larger and flower earlier. I bot another 21 plants last spring and hope they do as well.

I couldn't resist a Lavandula dentata 'Serenity' this last spring which is a zone 8-9 plant so I bot it as an annual. The foliage is very fragrant and I grew it in a large pot on my front deck (full sun) so I could run my hand over the leaves frequently. That plant has been so worth the $3 I paid. I recently cut it back to dry the foliage and brought it indoors to see if I can overwinter it.

Lavandula dentata 'Serenity' - I had already cut some blooms for a bouquet...

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Lavender 'Munstead" just beginning to bloom in early August...

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Lots of blooms by September...

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Here is a link that might be useful: many lavender var. here

I'm in the same area as you, I believe, lilyfinch. I have never found lavender to be fussy. Blooms a good portion of the summer and is better behaved than my catmint (which has tried to run over everything in its sight this year!)

I'm actually moving a few catmint from my deck area so I can feature the lavender more. No idea what variety I have. It's the stuff Home Depot sells for $5.97. :-) I think it might be english lavender... yes, that sounds about right.

Well, I am green with envy, have tried and tried to grow it with no luck at all. However, am going to give it another try next spring with really amending the soil with sand. They do grow it in Texas, so can't use that as an excuse.

Love your pictures!

Lilyfinch- I vote for Hidcote! It doesn't mind my overwatering it, has a great fragrance, likes clay soil and is supposed to be hardy to zone 4 :)

I can't get my pictures to post, but here's a link to some from earlier in the summer. It's a cottage garden post about herbs.

Here is a link that might be useful: Herb post

Wow thanks everyone! I really love the pictures. I wish i could walk through the gardens and smell it now! I think when i am brainstorming this winter ill have to decide. If i hadnt discovered catmint, this would be a no brainer. What i love about catmint is that it has been blooming since april! And it is so full of bees i just adore it.
I am thinking maybe pots with lavender would be best, because i do have clayish soil and im not sure how to ammend and still grow other plants with the lavender. So the pots would be easy to control.

I hope its not weird to already be excited for next year gardening, but i am!

Lilyfinch- It's not weird...I think gardeners are always looking forward to next year. We're mainly optimists and think that next year is going to be even better than this year. After a nice rest and time to plan, it's fun to try new ideas in the garden.

I'm looking forward to next spring, because my weeds will be gone! LOL Plus, I love the way the soil smells in the spring, when you get out and dig and everything is so fresh and new :)

Catmint is very nice, but maybe try some Hidcote lavender in front of your roses. They're beautiful together and the bumblebees love it!

I grow maybe 30 lavender plants in my area. They do reseed to my surprise. I've managed to also root my favorites.

So what are my favs... Munsteads - tops. I also have Grosso and French.

They do attract bees. Now to guarantee great success with these plants.. plant them in a good well draining soil. If you have very hardpack clay soil. Do not simply dig a hole and plant because - that hole will not drain properly. Instead, dig a hole but mound it so the plant sits higher and will have good drainage. The only thing that kills off these plants is getting too wet and too cold. Do not prune until spring so you have those branches to protect hte plant from the cold.

I'm supposed to be ammending the soil for lavender?? Uh... whoops. This is why I don't visit the vegetable section much. Those people get ornery when you have no answer for what you ammended your garden with. haha.

I have heavy soil and seem to grow lavender just fine. I guess you would call it clay. It comes up in big chunks.

scully, I would recommend a combination of compost and something gritty like rough sand. Clay is actually very rich in minerals and nutrients -- so if you can break it up with the combination I suggested, it will enrich your garden. (However NOTE sand and clay alone = cement or bricks)

However lavenders are usually very hardy plants. They grow wild in the mediterranean in hardpack and rocky soil. The only thing there it doesn't rain as much and drainage is probably fine where they thrive. I have lavenders reseed and grow in tight spaces between bricks.

In our climate as long as we address the drainage issue, they will be fine. Don't hard prune in the fall but do this in spring after the last frost.

I also love Lanvender and have grown the English lavender - Lavandula vera, for over 10 years. The trick with pruning is to prune right after it stops making flowers, and cut back to where you see new fresh green growth, and of course, in spring cut out all dead branches right to the base.
I've read sensible recommendations of adding oyster shells(crushed, of course)or chicken scratch to make the soil drain better.
It's also recommended that lime be added at planting time; as with every amendment, read the label for proper proportions to add.
I love lavender, and have a new one to grow this year; the variety Lavender Pinnata, with ferny, fragrant leaves.
Hope this helps.