Lavender cultivar trial results for North-Central New Mexico, 2003 through 2005

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Lavender Cultivar Trial Results for North-
Central New Mexico, 2003 Through 2005
Research Report 770 (revised)
Charles A. Martin, Jaime Rodriguez, Mary O’Connell, Robert Steiner,
and Shengrui Yao1
Agricultural Experiment Station • College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences
Abstract
Two cultivars of Lavandula angustifolia Mill. (‘Com-pacta’
and ‘Hidcote’) and four cultivars of Lavandula
x intermedia (‘Emerisa’, ‘Grosso’, ‘Provence’, and
‘Super’) were planted from 4-inch (10.2 cm) com-mercially
obtained nursery stock in a randomized
complete block design on June 24, 2002, at the
New Mexico State University Sustainable Agricul-ture
Science Center at Alcalde in north-central New
Mexico at an elevation of 5,724 feet (1,745 m).
Plantings were made into a Fruitland sandy loam on
raised beds with 36-inch (91.4 cm) spacing within
and between rows. All plots were furrow irrigated.
Weed control was achieved by hand weeding and
the use of woven polypropylene landscape fabric.
After allowing the plants to establish for one grow-ing
season, plant survival numbers, flower and stem
fresh and dry weights, and camphor content were
measured during the growing seasons of 2003, 2004,
and 2005 as indicators of local adaptability, yield,
and plant material quality. ‘Hidcote’ and ‘Provence’
survival after the first season was 93% of the
original stand; survival of all other cultivars was
100%. Lavandula x intermedia cultivars produced
significantly more than L. angustifolia cultivars all
three years. ‘Super’, ‘Grosso’, and ‘Emerisa’ pro-duced
the highest three-year average yields, with
1,575, 1,439, and 1,176 lb/ac (1,763, 1,612, and
1,317 kg/ha) dry weight, respectively. ‘Emerisa’
reached its highest dry weight yield in 2004, yield-ing
1,411 lb/ac (1,580 kg/ha); all other cultivars
yielded highest in 2005. ‘Super’ and ‘Grosso’ pro-duced
the highest dry weight yields in 2005, with
2,219 and 2,197 lb/ac (2,484 and 2,461 kg/ha),
respectively. ‘Grosso’ and ‘Super’ contained the
highest percentages of camphor at 1.46 and 0.73%
(g compound/g dry plant material), respectively.
Yield and camphor content were consistently
higher among Lavandula x intermedia cultivars;
laboratory chemical analysis did not detect any
camphor in the two Lavandula angustifolia culti-vars,
‘Compacta’ and ‘Hidcote’. Results indicate
that both lavender species are adaptable to USDA
1Respectively, Agricultural Specialist, Sustainable Agriculture Science Center at Alcalde; Science Specialist, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences;
Regents Professor, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences; Professor, Department of Economics, Applied Statistics, and International Business; and
Assistant Professor, Sustainable Agriculture Science Center at Alcalde, all of New Mexico State University.
Figure 1. Lavandula sp. in flower.