What To Do With Your Lavender Plants

Lavender is grown for its beauty and fragrance. This herb has many home uses, most of which start with dried flowers. Drying lavender is easy and here’s how;

Gather fresh lavender flowers by cutting at the base of the spike when three-quarters of the flowers are open. It’s okay if the stems are a little long, you can cut them down later. Cut your lavender when the flowers are three-quarters open. This is when they are at their most fragrant and colorful stage. 

The best time to cut is in the morning after the dew has dried. Gather stems of fresh cut lavender with the flowers lined up together. Tie them just under the flowers and at the base of the stems. Hang your bouquets upside down in a dry, dark place for 2 weeks. When you hang these bouquets to dry, place a box or sheet underneath to catch any buds that fall during the drying process. Once dry, rub the flower heads between your hands over a tray to catch the buds. Store the buds in an airtight container until you are ready to use them. Don’t discard the stems! You can use them for fire starters in your chimenea or other fireplace area.

Another alternative to drying lavender is to take fresh cut bouquets and set them upright in a vase without water. Keep them for decoration or use them for your favorite DIY!

Growing culinary lavender, like English Lavender, can be used for baked goods, teas, or my favorite, lavender syrup for summer lavender lemonade! 

Here are some of my favorite recipes using lavender!
Lavender infused oil

1. Fill a glass container ¾ full of lavender flowers and stems.
2. Completely submerge lavender with your oil of choice. Sunflower, hempseed, coconut and jojoba are popular choices.
3. Place in a sunny area for solar infusion, shaking occasionally to keep things mixed up, especially during the first few days.
4. Strain using cheesecloth and retain your lavender infused oil. This oil won't smell as strong as our lavender essential oil. But you can always add a few drops of essential oil to your infused oil.

Use your infused oil for a face or body moisturizer, bug bites, sunburns, eczema, rashes, salves, and so much more!

Sachets
Put your dried lavender buds into sachets to use in drawers, pillowcase, or to replace dryer sheets.

 Lavender Tea
4 oz of hot water
1 teaspoon of dried, organic English or French lavender flowers

1. Steep for 5-10 minutes or desired strength
2. Strain out lavender.
3. Add lemon and honey. Sit back and relax.

Lavender tea is a calming beverage to help you relax. It is a sleep-inducing, stress relieving beverage.
 
Lavender Syrup
¾ cups water
¾ cups sugar
3 tablespoons organic English or French dried lavender flowers

1. Put all ingredients into a saucepan and simmer, stirring until sugar dissolves completely. 
2. Take off heat and let steep for 10 minutes
3. Strain and pour syrup into an airtight container. Syrup will keep for two weeks in the refrigerator

 Lavender syrup is easy and delicious in lemonade and specialty coffee.

 Lavender Sugar Scrub
1 ¾ sugar
2 tablespoons of dried lavender flowers
3 tablespoons of coconut oil
Mix all ingredients together in a glass jar and enjoy!
The easiest body scrub with exfoliating, moisturizing and calming benefits!

There are so many uses for homegrown lavender! Enjoy these recipes and don’t be afraid to try new ones!