Can You Grow Lavender Indoors?

Lavender is a fragrant and colorful plant that is beloved because of its numerous benefits. These lovely plants grow best outdoors.

But if you don’t have space in your backyard or live in a cold climate, or you simply want to have a beautiful lavender on your bedside table or kitchen, for example, I have some good news for you: lavender can be grown indoors as well.

Lavender which is growing indoors, will still need plenty of sunlight and they need soil that is draining well, so you still have to pay attention to their needs. And there is another question when growing lavender indoors: which lavender to chose for growing in your house?

In this article, I will introduce you to the best lavender for growing indoors. I will teach you where to place lavender indoors and talk about the benefits of growing lavender indoors.

Let’s get started.

Best Lavender for Growing Indoors

When you are thinking about growing lavender indoors, you first must think about which variety you choose. Because not all lavenders are suitable to grow in pots or are not hardy enough to the fluctuating temperature of your home.

The first thing you should think about is the size of the variety. You probably don’t want a huge bush to have in your home, and these probably will not live up until their maturity size, because they don’t like to grow in pots.

So, when you choose the variety of lavender, you should think about a dwarf variety. A few of these dwarf varieties which I can recommend are Goodwin Creek Grey, Munstead or Little Lottie.

However, my experience is that the best lavender to grow indoors is French Lavender dwarf varieties. These are smaller varieties that can grow very well in pots and are hardy enough to handle the temperature changes in your house.

French lavender will also produce more flowers indoors than English lavender and these grow very well in pots. But from all of the French lavender varieties, the Lavandula stoechas ‘Anouk’ is one of the best varieties to grow indoors.

Lavandula stoechas ‘Anouk’ is very compact; therefore, it doesn’t take up much space and can be placed on a window sill as well. Thanks to its size, this variety likes to be grown in pots, and this still produces lots of fragrant flowers.

When choosing the perfect variety for your home, you should also remember that, while French lavender is better to grow indoors, these will live only for 4-5 years.

But the English varieties mentioned above, such as Hidcote and Munstead, will live for longer if they have all the needed conditions. The only drawback is that these will not produce as many flowers as the French lavender.

Where You Place Lavender Indoors?

When you decide to grow lavender indoors, you should think about its place as well. Lavenders are not typically house plants, so, they need specific conditions to survive and thrive.

As I mentioned earlier, lavender is a sun lover plant, that needs 6+ hours of direct sunlight per day. Lavender will not survive in shady places or in bright, but indirect sunlight.

If the plant doesn’t get enough direct sunlight, this will become leggy and will produce fewer flowers with less fragrance.

Lavender loves to have their own space and enjoys the airflow between the foliage. So, do not overcrowd its surrounding with other plants or objects.

Make sure you put your lavender plant in a sunny place, where this can get at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day, and the room is dry enough. For example, bathrooms are the worst place for lavender. Preferably, place your lavender on a south-facing window sill.

Will Lavender Flower Indoors?

As I stated above, lavender can produce flowers if grown indoors, but you must assure them of all the needed conditions.

Lavender loves heat and direct sunlight. If this is not given to the plant, that will affect the blooming process. You will get less, or no flowers, and a leggy plant. To ensure that your lavender gets enough light, you can use a growing light.

The type of soil is also very important. Lavender doesn’t like to be overwatered. Therefore, they need well-draining soil in a well-draining pot.

Lavender prefers alkaline soil. To help with that, you can add some eggshell once in a while to the soil. This way, the soil cannot turn acidic.

The variety of your lavender plant is another factor that will affect the flowering process indoors. A French lavender variety that has hardiness of 8-9, will produce more flowers than an English variety that is less hardy. Some of the lavenders just simply prefer to grow outdoors, rather than indoors. Therefore, these will produce fewer flowers if grown indoors.

Benefits of Growing Lavender Indoors

Growing lavender indoors will not only boost your home appearance, but you can get several benefits out of the plant.

The first benefit is the brilliant scent of the flower and the whole foliage of the plant. The fragrance of lavender can make you more relaxed and calmer. Ancient Romans used lavender in their bath water to scent this.

Lavender spring foliage and flowers can also be used in your kitchen. It is usually used for desserts, such as different sponge cakes or chocolate, but many people infuse their lemonade with lavender. Lavender can also be used in different alcoholic drinks.

This lovely plant is often used for its medicinal benefits as well. The essential oils made out of the plant can be used as an add on to your body lotion or infuser and its scent will get you a better sleep.

The dried flowers of the lavender can be used in crafting. Many decorations can be made out of the scented flowers, such as candles, or can be used for scented satchels for your wardrobe.

We should not forget about another great benefit of lavender: these scented plants are great pest repellents. The scent of lavender will keep away spiders, mosquitos and other bugs.

Wrap Up

Lavenders are best grown outdoors, but some varieties can be easily grown indoors as well.

The best lavender to grow indoors is the French lavender, Lavandula stoechas ‘Anouk’ variety, but Munsted, Goodwin Creek Grey or Little Lottie are also very grateful if grown in pots and indoors.

If you want your lavender plant to produce lots of flowers, then you should make sure this gets enough direct sunlight and it is warm enough in the room where this is placed.

Growing lavender in your home will benefit you not only in an aesthetical way. But you can enjoy the benefits of its scent and flavor by adding it to your bath water or into your desserts.