WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Lavandula stoechas ssp. & cvs., WUCOLS IV

How often to water Spanish lavender in California

In July in the Central Valley, established Spanish lavender in loam needs a deep watering about every 14 days: about 1.5 gallons each time for a plant 2 feet across, about 0.8 gallons a week. Spanish lavender is a compact, woody evergreen subshrub with soft gray-green leaves. Its plump purple flower heads wear flaglike bracts, often called rabbit ears. In mild California gardens it can bloom much of the year, most heavily from spring through summer. It thrives in heat and lean, gritty soil, and it rots in wet, poorly drained ground.

PerennialRated for 5 of 6 zones

How often to water Spanish lavender, month by month

Your city
Plant width
2 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for Spanish lavender and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1 foot of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure plant width

A shrub with its width marked from one side to the other and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the plant, from the tips of the leaves on one side to the tips on the other.

Water the whole area the plant covers, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that area.

A wider plant means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While it is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry 3 to 4 inches down at the edge of a young Spanish lavender in its first summer signals that it needs a soak
  • Flower heads browning early and gray leaves wilting in a long heat wave can mean an established plant has dried too far
  • Whole branches wilting and turning gray-brown while the soil is damp point to root rot from overwatering or poor drainage
  • Powdery white patches or leaf spots in crowded, humid plantings point to poor air circulation more than to water
  • Few flowers on a leafy plant usually trace to shade or rich, heavily fed soil rather than to water

How to water it

  • Water at the base with drip, keeping spray off the foliage so the leaves stay dry
  • Soak the root zone about a foot deep, then let the soil dry several inches down before the next soak
  • Plant in full sun in gritty, sandy or loamy soil that drains fast, on a mound where clay is heavy
  • Use a gravel mulch and keep the crown open to the air
  • Space plants so air moves between them, and extend drip outward as each plant widens to 2 or 3 feet

Through the seasons

A new Spanish lavender needs regular soakings through its first summer while its roots spread, then much less. Established plants take dry spells well where they rate low water, but summer heat still calls for an occasional deep soak. It stays evergreen and flowers most heavily from mid-spring to late summer. Shear lightly after the main bloom, never down to the ground. Rain usually carries it through winter on the coast and in the Central Valley. Low water is the WUCOLS rating on the north-central coast, in the Central Valley, on the south coast and in South Inland. It rates moderate water in the high desert. WUCOLS marks it as not suited to the low desert.

In pots

Spanish lavender suits a pot on a sunny patio, and a container gives it the sharp drainage it needs. Use a gritty mix and a pot with open holes. Check the mix 2 inches down every few days in summer and water when it is dry, letting the excess drain away fully. Never leave the pot standing in a full saucer. In winter, water sparingly, and shelter the pot in a hard freeze, since this lavender is less cold hardy than common lavender.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
1.07gal per sq ft in JulyLow water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
6.84 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.761.52.33.00.16JAN0.26FEB0.43MAR0.61APR0.83MAY0.99JUN1.07JUL0.95AUG0.72SEP0.47OCT0.22NOV0.14DEC0.761.52.33.00.16JFM0.61AMJ1.07JAS0.47OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 1.07 in Jul, 6.84 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Spanish Lavender: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.150.160.310.310.74–
Feb0.210.260.320.350.93–
Mar0.350.430.460.521.46–
Apr0.470.610.560.641.89–
May0.580.830.640.782.39–
Jun0.640.990.690.922.85–
Jul0.641.070.7913.04–
Aug0.60.950.740.932.79–
Sep0.50.720.60.742.14–
Oct0.350.470.460.531.46–
Nov0.190.220.330.360.93–
Dec0.120.140.260.270.65–
Year4.86.846.27.3721.27–

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated low water in the Central Valley, like Spanish lavender. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

AgapanthusAgapanthus orientalislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGeraniumsPelargonium x hortorum and cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySalviaSalvia greggii ssp., cvs. & hybridslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyIrisesIris germanicalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySucculentsEcheveria spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRussian SagePerovskia spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyYarrowAchillea millefolium (non-native hybrids)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyMountain AlyssumAlyssum montanumlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySilver SageSalvia argentealow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPurple MulleinVerbascum phoeniceumlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySilvery YarrowAchillea clavennaelow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyFern Leaf YarrowAchillea filipendulinalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCalifornia Native YarrowAchillea millefolium (CA native cultivars)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyWoolly YarrowAchillea tomentosalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPerennial HollyhockAlcea rosea cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyMountain Lady's MantleAlchemilla alpinalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes Spanish lavender, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water Spanish lavender in summer?

In July, established Spanish lavender in loam needs a deep watering about every 14 days in the Central Valley, about every 18 days on the south coast and about every 14 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does Spanish lavender need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established Spanish lavender needs about 0.1 gallons a day for a plant 2 feet across and about 0.4 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for Spanish lavender change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates Spanish lavender separately for each of the six California climate zones: low water in the North-Central Coastal zone, low water in the Central Valley zone, low water in the South Coastal zone, low water in the South Inland zone, moderate water in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, not suited to this region in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

How do I prune Spanish lavender?

Shear it back lightly after the summer bloom to keep it bushy and the flower stems short. Do not cut it down to the ground, which can kill it. Regular light pruning also slows the plant from turning woody.

Why is my Spanish lavender dying in the middle?

Woody, open centers come with age, and this lavender is often short-lived. Sudden collapse in damp soil points to root rot instead. Check drainage before giving more water.

Is Spanish lavender deer resistant?

Yes, it resists both deer and rabbits, which makes it useful in open gardens. Its flowers also draw many pollinators.

Can I cook with Spanish lavender?

Its flowers are not recommended for eating. Grow it for fragrance, color and pollinators instead.

How is Spanish lavender different from common lavender?

Spanish lavender carries short, plump flower heads topped with flaglike bracts. It is more fragile and less cold hardy than common lavender, but it thrives in hot weather. Both need sharp drainage and full sun.

More plant watering guides

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Sources