Landscaping Ideas: 11 Lavender Gardens Around the World

Lavender is the secret weapon of gardeners around the world. In warm, dry climates, the herb’s 39 evergreen species can fill problem spots in the garden with year-round foliage and with flowers in lovely shades of purple, blue, violet, and gray. From Albuquerque to Athens, we’ve rounded up 11 of our favorite examples.
Give lavender full sun and from 2 to 3 square feet of space to spread. For growing tips (and growing zones), see Field Guide: Lavender.

 1. England

2. Italy

Above: In the Piedmontese hills, Turin-based landscape architect Cristiana Ruspa unified discrete outdoor spaces–a circular driveway, a shaded terrace, and an inner courtyard with a bleached wood pergola–with a colorful palette of  low-water perennials. For more, see Rehab Diaries: The Resurrection of an Italian Nobleman’s Garden.

3. Australia

For a romantic combination (as shown above), combine Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ (pink) with lavender (purple), and a silvery perennial grass (foreground)

4. Northern California

5. Australia

Above: Sydney-based Garden designer Peter Fudge designed a formal garden with drought tolerant plants including drifts of lavender beneath olive trees. For more of this garden, see Garden Designer Visit: Lavender Fields in Australia.

6. South Africa

7. New York

Above: On a Manhattan rooftop, Vanity Fair art director Julie Weiss mixes the purple shades of agastache and lavender (at right) with wild grasses, hydrangeas, and roses. For more of her garden see Garden Visit: At Home with Vanity Fair’s Art Director in Manhattan.>

8. Spain

Above: A low hedge of lavender edges a pathway in the southwest Mallorcan garden of a home Danish fashion designer Malene Birger sold recently for €1.295 million. Photograph via Lucas Fox International Properties.

9. Los Angeles

Above: LA-based garden designer Naomi Sanders created a water-wise courtyard garden with a plant list that includes lavender, native California irises, agaves, Iceberg roses and silvery Santolina. For more, see LA Confidential: A Private Courtyard Goes Luxe on a Budget.

10. Albuquerque

Above: Lavender mingles with Queen Anne’s Lace at Los Poblanos Inn, where guests can volunteer to work in the 25-acre garden–a farm, really–which produces much of the food on the menu. For more, see From Farm to Table at Los Poblanos Inn.

11. Upstate New York

For more inspiration, see:

• Lavender: A Field Guide to Planting, Care, and Design
• Dry Garden Roundup: Best Drought Tolerant Gardens from the Gardenista Gallery
• Wendy’s Secret Garden in Sydney, Australia

Finally, get more ideas on how to successfully plant, grow, and care for lavender with our Lavender: A Field Guide.

Finally, get more ideas on how to plant, grow, and care for various perennial plants with our Perennials: A Field Guide.