French lavender, Lavandula stoechas 'Castilliano'

A French lavender, Lavandula stoechas 'Castilliano' is also known as Spanish Lavender, and is a compact, upright, evergreen shrub with aromatic, grey-green leaves, and heads of fragrant purple flowers held on straight stems in late spring and throughout summer.

The flowers are not quite like ordinary lavender blooms, and in fact make this variety EXTRAordinary, as they are topped with long, darker bracts that look like butterfly wings or bunny ears - hence its common name of bunny ear or butterfly lavender.

The silvery leaves and blooms are packed with a heady scent, the purple flowers will provide you a colourful spectacle from early to mid-summer and are a magnet to bees, butterflies and other beneficial creatures, which will have your garden buzzing with life.

Perfect for growing either side of doorways, pathways and entrances or for the patio, lavender is perfect for many situations and French lavender is one of the prettiest and eye-catching varieties. Castilliano takes well to pots, just make sure that the soil in the container is light and drains well.

Once established, French Lavender is extremely drought tolerant, easy to grow and needs very little maintenance - you can keep it in great shape with a little pruning twice a year; trim lightly in mid to late summer, removing spent flower heads. Prune again in early spring, removing about 2.5cm of growth.

Supplied as a set of 6 plug plants, ready to pot up and grow on before hardening off and moving to their final positions.