Lavender | Plant, Herb, Uses, Essential Oil, & Facts - Britannica

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• Introduction
• Physical description
• Essential oil

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External Websites

• Cleveland Clinic - 6 Lavender Benefits and How To Use It
• Purdue University - NewCROP - Lavender
• PlantVillage - Lavender
• Royal Horticultural Society - Lavender
• University of California - Agriculture and Natural Resources - Lavender Production, Markets, and Agritourism (PDF)
• NC State Extension - Lavender: History, Taxonomy, and Production
• National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - Lavender and the Nervous System
• Mount Sinai - Lavender
• The Spruce - How to Grow Lavender: Planting and Care
• University of Kentucky - Center for Crop Diversification - Lavender
• Cell Press - Heliyon - Aromatherapy for the brain: LavenderÂ’s healing effect on epilepsy, depression, anxiety, migraine, and AlzheimerÂ’s disease: A review article (PDF)
• American Botanical Council - Lavender
• WebMD - Lavender - Uses, Side Effects, and More
• Frontiers - Frontiers in Plant Science - Impact of drought stress on biochemical and molecular responses in lavender (Lavandula angustifolia Mill.): effects on essential oil composition and antibacterial activity

lavender plant Ask Anything Homework Help Also known as: Lavandula Written and fact-checked by Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Britannica Editors History Britannica AI Ask Anything Table of Contents Table of Contents Ask Anything

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lavender, (genus Lavandula), genus of about 30 species of plants in the mint family (Lamiaceae), native to countries bordering the Mediterranean. Lavender species are common in herb gardens for their fragrant leaves and attractive flowers. The plants are widely cultivated for their essential oils, which are used to scent a variety of products. The dried flowers, for example, have long been used in sachets to scent chests and closets, and the ancient Romans used lavender in their baths. Lavender is sometimes also used to flavour beverages and sweets and has a number of applications in herbal medicine. English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), French lavender (L. stoechas), and woolly lavender (L. lanata) are among the most widely cultivated species.

Physical description

Lavenders are small evergreen shrubs with gray-green hoary linear leaves. The purple flowers are sparsely arranged on spikes at the tips of long bare stalks and produce small nutlet fruits. The fragrance of the plant is caused by shining oil glands imbedded among tiny star-shaped trichomes (plant hairs) that cover the flowers, leaves, and stems. The plants in cultivation do not usually produce seed, and propagation is accomplished by cuttings or by dividing the roots.

Essential oil

Lavender oil, or lavender flower oil, is obtained by distillation of the flowers and is used chiefly in fine perfumes and cosmetics. It is a colourless or yellow liquid, the fragrant constituents of which are linalyl acetate, linalool, pinene, limonene, geraniol, and cineole. Lavender water, a solution of the essential oil in alcohol with other added scents, is used in a variety of toilette preparations.

Related Topics: lavender oil English lavender woolly lavender French lavender lavender water (Show more) See all related content Britannica Quiz Plants: From Cute to Carnivorous

Spike oil, or spike lavender oil, is distilled from a somewhat inferior grade of lavender. Oil of spike is used in painting on porcelain, in soap manufacture, and to scent other products.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Melissa Petruzzello.