532 



Cultivation of Lavender. [dec, 



cultivated in any other country. In a favourable locality a 

 single plant will form a bush 5 ft. in diameter ifjnot crowded 

 by other plants and throw up spikes nearly 5'Jft, high. An 

 open situation and dry soil is best, as the plant fails to thrive 

 in a moist situation, while a rich soil furnishes too much 

 nutriment and the plant runs to leaf . English-grown lavender 

 at one time supplied the bulk of the oil used in this country, 

 but some years ago a disease manifested itself in the planta- 

 tions with the result that the acreage decreased and the price 

 of oil rose rapidly. This was followed by an increase in the 

 importation of French oil and subsequently by a great diminu- 

 tion in values. The English oil, however, is still considered 

 the best and generally fetches the highest price. 



Mr. J. C Sawer, F.L.S., in his " Odorographia "* gives 

 detailed information as to its cultivation at the present time 

 and the chief points are summarized below. 



The principal lavender plantations of England are in the 

 districts of Mitcham, Carshalton, and Beddington in Surrey, 

 Hit chin in Hertfordshire, and Canterbury in Kent. The 

 Surrey and Hertford plantations are situated on the outcrop 

 of the chalk which surrounds the London basin. The most 

 suitable conditions of soil are found to be light brown loam 

 over chalk, the depth of the loam being very slight, varying 

 from 6 to 20 in. On slopes there is hardly any soil at all 

 in some parts, while in some of the hollows it is as deep as 

 4 ft. There is often a thin seam of Coombe rock, of a soft, 

 dry, pulverulent nature, light brown in colour, between the 

 loam and the chalk, which is very beneficial to the plant. 

 In selecting ground, a site should be chosen which slopes 

 rather to the south or south-west. A wood or copse on the 

 south-west boundary is of some advantage to ward off or break 

 the force of gales which may occur in July ; but in the autumn 

 and winter months, the plants having been clipped present 

 little resistance to the wind. A July gale may do some damage ; 

 the tall spikes wave like corn in the wind, but with such weight 

 and momentum as to cause the woody branches sometimes 

 to split at the junction with the stem. Tall trees in the 

 immediate vicinity are objectionable, keeping off too much 



* " Odorographia : A Natural History of Raw Materials and Drugs Used in the 

 Perfume Industry," by J. C. Sawer, F.L.S., 1907. (Gurney and Jackson.) 



