Lavender is such a beautiful plant that can be used for many different purposes. But what if you’re an overwatering type of person? You know the type, they water their plants every day and sometimes twice a day. If this sounds like you, then it might not come as good news to hear that lavender needs much less water than most other plants.
This plant typically thrives in dry Mediterranean climates, so it is unusually tolerant to droughts and needs less water than many other plants. As such, it’s no wonder why giving your lavender too much water will cause problems.
How to Save Overwatered Lavender?
Stop watering the plant
You should stop watering your plant to allow it to recover from the overwatering. Don’t add any more water until the soil is dry throughout. You may have to wait a few weeks before you can water the plant again. This is to allow the roots of your lavender to fully recover.
Re-pot the plant
Make sure you use a pot that has drainage holes to allow excess water to fall from the bottom. You may also want to use different soil, by adding a drainage mix, like Perlite (Amazon link).
Prune rotting roots
You may want to remove any roots that have turned black, as these will be hard to save. Use a pair of sterilized scissors to cut these roots from the base of your lavender. Do all of your roots look rotten? Then it may be too late for your plant…
Monitor soil moisture
Moving forward, it’s important to only water when the top few inches of the soil are dry. You can check when it’s time to water by using a soil probe (Amazon link) that can be inserted in the ground up to its full length and will stick out of the ground once it’s reached optimum moisture level.
In order to grow lavenders, it is important to have plenty of sand in the soil. Sand improves drainage and replicates the natural lower fertility of soil in the Mediterranean.
Remember that lavenders should be planted in a sandy potting mix that allows water to drain with ease. Heavy soils and ones made of clay should be avoided, as they retain water for long periods of time.
If you cut back on watering and only use soil that drains well, then you can save your overwatered lavender. Your lavender should recover in 3-4 weeks.
How Much Water Do Lavender Plants Need?
Lavender grows best in light, dry soil that doesn’t hold much moisture. Overwatering your lavender plant will eventually kill it.
In fact, older lavenders will not need any additional water and get the appropriate amount of humidity from rain, even during dry periods in summer.
The lavender plant can tolerate droughts in the driest climates, meaning it is often overwatered, rather than underwatered.
What Does Overwatered Lavender Look Like?
Your lavender will look droopy with brown foliage if it has been watered too much. If left for too long, the roots will begin to rot – this makes them appear dark and mushy. Unfortunately, you will lose that beautiful color that lavender is known for.
Other Care Tips
Prune lavender plants after bloom season (typically around August). This helps promote new growth which means more flowers next year!
Don’t forget about fertilizing – Lavender needs to be fertilized every three weeks in the early spring, every two weeks from May through July, and monthly for the rest of the year.
Maintain a consistent watering schedule – Water once or twice a week (depending on your climate) during cooler months when less sunlight is available; increase frequency to reduce stressors such as drought, windy conditions, and low humidity levels during hot weather periods.
Replanting – Move it into more appropriate soil with plenty of shade protection near other plants that are similar in size at least one foot away from any other plant if possible. Consider planting some understory trees nearby like blueberry bushes.
Conclusion
I hope you have enjoyed reading this article on how to save overwatered lavender.
After reading these easy ways to save overwatered lavender, there are many things a person can do to make sure that their plants stay healthy and happy.
The main lesson is to be precise with the amount of water you use. As such, I thoroughly recommend using a moisture probe or dipping your finger into the top few inches of soil to check for dryness.
If you do notice your lavender has been overwatered, you should act quickly by removing as much water as you can, which may involve re-potting your lavender into a different pot.
