Planting, maintaining & propagating lavender heather

The lavender heather quickly attracts attention with its red leaves and bell-shaped flowers. It is also an excellent bee pasture.

The shadow bell, like the lavender heather (Pieris) is also called, convinces individually or as a hedge. The evergreen shrubs are easy to care for and can even withstand frosty temperatures. Find out what appropriate care looks like and how to plant the lavender heather here.

Lavender heather: flowering, origin and characteristics

At the lavender heather (Pieris) is a genus of plants with a total of seven different species within the heather family (Ericacea). They come from the Caribbean, East Asia and North America. Two types, namely

Pieris floribunda and Pieris japonica, can also grow in our Central European latitudes. With about ten centimeters growth per year, shadow bells grow quite slowly. Lavender heather are evergreen, perennial shrubs that can reach sizes of two to four meters. They have nothing to do with the lavender. Only the spiral arrangement of the leaves is reminiscent of the lavender plant. The leaves are leathery, entire and lanceolate in shape. In autumn, the leaves turn red-brown, depending on the species. The lavender heather blooms in spring. The bell-shaped flowers are in racemes or panicles and can be white or pink. Because of its shape, the lavender heather is also called the shadow bells. But the lavender heather is not only convincing optically.

Is the lavender heather bee-friendly? Yes, insects also enjoy the decorative plant, which offers plenty of nectar in spring. It is often used as a bee pasture by local insects.

The most beautiful lavender heather varieties

Two types of lavender heather can grow in our latitudes. Through breeding, some varieties of lavender heather were also created, which mainly have different sizes. We present the most beautiful ones here.

• Pieris japonica: The Japanese lavender heather has a loose habit and forms white flowers. Many varieties of lavender heather have been cultivated from this species. If it is planted in a tub, its growth will be somewhat restricted and it will remain smaller. In the bed it becomes about 2 - 3 meters high and just as wide.
• Pieris floribunda: The American lavender heather, or multi-flowered lavender heather, remains a little smaller than the Japanese lavender heather with a maximum height of 2 meters. It also blooms white, is densely branched and can be kept in a bucket.
• Pieris japonica "Carnaval": This variety develops white flowers and green foliage, which is creamy white around the edges. Height: 80 - 100 cm.

• Pieris japonica ‘Little Heath’: Here, too, the foliage is colored green and has a white border. Newly emerging leaves are reddish and give the plant an interesting appearance. The flower color is white. Height: 50 - 60 cm.
• Pieris japonica "Valley Valentine": The flowers of this variety are red and appear a little earlier than in the other varieties from mid-March. Height: 80 - 150 cm.
• Pieris japonica "Forest Flame": Here, the name speaks for itself. The leaves sprout bright red and become lighter with age, first pink, later light green. Since this variety is not very frost-hardy, it is only suitable for mild locations. Height: 70 - 80 cm.
• Pieris japonica "Mountain Fire": This variety sees Pieris japonica Quite similar to ‘Forest Flame’, but a bit more frost-resistant. However, the older foliage turns dark green instead of light green. Height: 120 - 160 cm.

Planting Pieris: location, time and procedure

The lavender heather is a bog bed plant that needs moist, shady locations and acidic soil to grow healthily. The bog plants also include, for example, rhododendrons, azaleas (rhododendron spec.), Skimmia (Skimmia spec.), Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-ideaea) or blueberry (Vaccinium myrtillus, V. corymbosum). The lavender heather prefers locations in partial shade. Too much sun or shade affects the growth and development of the flowers.

You can plant the lavender heather in the flower bed or in a tub. The best time to do this is in autumn. In this way, buds can still be created and you can enjoy the flowers as early as next spring. First, dig a planting hole, paying attention to the space that the growing lavender heather will take up. That can be 2 meters in width. Prepare a bucket of lime-free water and soak the root ball of the shadow bell. The plant prefers a rather acidic environment and cannot cope with lime. The lavender heather is placed in the planting hole and all gaps are filled with acidic soil. This is what ours is for, for example Plantura Bio-Acid Soil recommended, which comes with an extra low pH value. It is reduced in peat and was specially developed for the requirements of bog plants.

Tip: Due to the dense growth, the evergreen lavender heather is perfect as a hedge. The planting distance should then be 20 - 50 cm, depending on the variety. The hedge should also be in a partially shaded location.

Care of the lavender heather

The lavender heather care is quite unproblematic. Above all, it is important to have an adequate water supply. Since the lavender heather is poisonous, it is best to wear gloves when cutting or transplanting.

Cut, water and fertilize lavender heather

A cut in the lavender heather allows longer-lasting flowering and bushy growth. Always remove the withered flowers above the next pair of leaves so that new flowers can form here again. After the flowering period, dead or unsightly branches should also be cut off. If a shoot is too long, you can cut it off above a thickening called an eye. This gives you a uniform appearance.

When it comes to watering, the most important thing is the water. This should be free of lime, so ideally use rainwater or stale tap water. You should water this regularly, but only enough to prevent waterlogging. If you keep the lavender heather in the pot, you can remove the excess water and create a drainage layer on the bottom of the pot.

Many nutrients do not need shadow bells. Nevertheless, you should occasionally fertilize potted plants in particular so that flowers and leaves continue to grow lush. For lavender heather in a pot, for example, ours is suitable Plantura organic hydrangea fertilizer, which contains all the important nutrients and also has an acidic effect. It is best to use the fertilizer when planting, repotting and fertilizing, so that the lavender heather is always comfortable. In the case of lavender heather in the bed, it is sufficient if you spread some leaf or needle litter on the ground around the plant. This layer of mulch brings nutrients back into the soil and also helps in freezing temperatures.

Bald lavender heather: what to do?

It is quite normal for the lavender heather to become bald with age and size. Fewer leaves and flowers are formed inside the shrub and the lavender heather appears bare. Then pruning can help. It is best to cut after flowering in early summer. Cut off the bare branches at the base and shorten the remaining shoots 1 to 2 cm above the next flower. The shadow bell will now sprout again.

Yellow leaves on the lavender heather: what to do?

The lavender heather can also attract pests and diseases. This often manifests itself in a discoloration of the foliage. If the lavender heather gets yellow leaves, it could be for one of the following reasons:

• Root rot: is mainly caused by waterlogging. This occurs when excess water cannot run off. Reduce the amount of water you use and, especially with potted plants, ensure that there is water drainage, e. B. through a drainage layer.
• Net bug (Stephanitis): an infestation manifests itself first of all in only punctual discoloration of the leaves. Here the bugs suck the leaves. Later they turn completely yellow. Larvae and eggs are found mainly on the underside of the leaf. If you discover an infestation, remove all infected leaves immediately, preferably by April. Also ours Plantura pest free neem helps against net bugs. It is extracted from the seeds of the neem tree and can simply be sprayed on the affected plant.

• Calcium chlorosis: Yellow leaves are often a sign of calcium chlorosis, as lavender heather is very sensitive to it. Make sure that the lavender heather is in acidic soil and that no lime is added through the fertilizer.
• Nutritional deficiency: A lack of iron, magnesium or nitrogen can also discolour the leaves. Iron deficiency is also caused by limescale or too high Soil pH caused as this inhibits the absorption of iron. Here, too, the right substrate and the right fertilizer are crucial. If necessary, repot the lavender heather and plant it in a pot with acidic soil.

Multiplication

If you want to propagate the lavender heather, you can use both cuttings and sinkers.

The best time to propagate via cuttings is after the flowering period. This is also the best time to cut back. You can then use the cut material for propagating cuttings.

• Use shoots that are not yet completely lignified, but are already starting to turn brown
• Cut these shoots diagonally with a sharp cutting tool or simply break them off. More roots can be formed on a larger cut or broken area. The cutting should be about three inches long.
• Remove the tip and cut larger leaves in half. The base is injured with a 1 - 2 cm long incision to stimulate root formation.
• Since lavender heather cuttings are difficult to root, you should also use rooting hormones: roll the base of the cuttings in them.
• Fill a vessel with loose potting soil, such as ours Plantura organic herb & sowing soil. So that the young plants form enough roots, our organic soil is specially equipped with a lower amount of nutrients. This stimulates the plants to develop their roots vigorously. Mix the substrate with even more sand or perlite, as the soil for the lavender heather must be particularly well drained.
• Insert the shoots halfway into the substrate, then moisten it to saturation.
• For rooting to take place, the temperature should be between 12 and 15 ° C.
• Keep the soil moist without waterlogging until new leaves have grown. This can take between 6 and 8 weeks.
• Now you can repot the plants in acidic soil.

The best time to propagate via subsoil is in spring. To do this, dig a small hollow in the earth next to the mother plant. It should be about six inches deep. If the substrate is not already acidic at this point, add a little acidic soil to the hole to improve the conditions for the subsidence. Find a one or two year old shoot on the lavender heather mother plant. This shoot is bent down by the mother plant and fixed with soil in the adjacent hollow. The tip of the shoot should protrude about 30 cm from the earth. You then weigh the whole thing down with stones or wire so that the shoot stays securely in the ground. The substrate must always be kept moist until autumn so that the shoot forms roots and can be separated. The lavender heather resulting from the lowering can now be replanted.

Is the lavender heather hardy?

With the exception of the ‘Forest Flame’ variety, the lavender heather is well hardy and does not require frost protection. However, there can occasionally be problems with frost drought if the shallow-rooted lavender heather can no longer absorb water from the frozen ground. If the lavender heather is not in a partially shaded place anyway, you can shade the plant in winter so that less water is released through perspiration. However, watering more does not help the plant, as the water in the soil would freeze again.
Potted plants should be protected in the root area with a jute sack, as the substrate in the pot freezes through faster.

Are shadow bells poisonous?

Since the lavender heather is poisonous, it should not be consumed under any circumstances. Otherwise gastrointestinal complaints or, in the case of larger quantities, even shortness of breath can occur. Contact of the sap with the skin can also cause irritation. Therefore, to be on the safe side, wear gloves when handling the shadow bell. The shadow bell is also poisonous for pets.

Another bog plant that goes well with the lavender heather is the azalea. We'll show you how to do the Planting and hibernating azaleas.