Traditional uses and benefits of French Lavender

Item: Traditional uses and benefits of French Lavender
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Author: Sylvia

French lavender Quick Facts
Name:	French lavender
Scientific Name:	Lavandula stoechas
Origin	Northwestern Africa, the Madeira Islands, the Canary Islands, southern Europe, and Western Asia
Colors	Green when young turning to brown as they mature
Shapes	Schizocarp, brown, woody, dehiscent containing four seeds
Taste	Bitter
Health benefits	Support abdominal and stomach pain, cough and cold, diabetes, kidney ailments, wounds, sneezing, asthma, bronchitis, rheumatism and lumbago

Lavandula stoechas commonly known as Spanish lavender or French lavender is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae. The plant is native to northwestern Africa (i.e. Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia), the Madeira Islands, the Canary Islands, southern Europe (i.e. Greece, Italy, France, Portugal and Spain) and Western Asia (i.e. Cyprus, Israel, Lebanon, Syria and Turkey). It has been introduced throughout Europe and to temperate/sub temperate areas in the Americas, Asia and Australia. It is an extensively used shrub in Unani medicines, Ayurveda and Siddha for brain problems like brain weakness, chronic headache, migraine, cold and flu. That’s why it is also popular as a Jaroob e Dimagh means the broom of the brain.

Few of the popular common names of the plant include Arabian Lavender, Bush Lavender, Butterfly Lavender, Common French Lavender, Italian Lavender, Quasti Lavender, Rabbit Ears, Spanish Lavender, Top Lavender, Topped Lavender, wild lavender and Bract Lavender. The Latin specific epithet stoechas comes from the Greek stoichas meaning “in rows”. It is also the Greek name for this species. Mostly in traditional medicine systems, its flowers and leaves are used in dried form. Its oil is also used in medicine. The taste of Ustukhuddus or French lavender is bitter.

French Lavender Facts

Name	French lavender
Scientific Name	Lavandula stoechas
Native	Northwestern Africa (i.e. Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia), the Madeira Islands, the Canary Islands, southern Europe (i.e. Greece, Italy, France, Portugal and Spain) and Western Asia (i.e. Cyprus, Israel, Lebanon, Syria and Turkey). It has been introduced throughout Europe and to temperate/sub temperate areas in the Americas, Asia and Australia
Common Names	Arabian Lavender, Bush Lavender, Butterfly Lavender, Common French Lavender, Italian Lavender, Quasti Lavender, Rabbit Ears, Spanish Lavender, Top Lavender, Topped Lavender, wild lavender, Bract Lavender
Name in Other Languages	Afrikaans: Haasoor laventel, Spaanse laventel Arabic : Arshameesa, Arshaneesa, Astuhudus, Halhaal, Moqif Rwah, Meharga Sunbul Al-Ahaaniya, Ustookhoodoos, Washa’i Al-Shaikh, daram mukawar (ضرم مكور) Azerbaijani: Yunan lavandası Basque: Izpiliku min Bengali: Tuntuna Berber : Amezzir, Timerza, Imezzir Breton: Lavand-kêr Catalan: Cap d’ase, Tomaní, Tomanyí, bafarull, bofarull, cabeçuda, campdasa, caps de burro, cardigrasses, romaní mascle, timó mascle, Chinese : Xun Yi Cao Corsican: Piumbonu Czech: Levandule korunkatá Danish: Sommerfuglelavendel,Vælsk Lavendel Dutch: Franse Lavendel, Kuifl avendel, Stechas Lavendel, Stechas Sort English: French lavender, Italian lavender, Spanish lavender, Topped lavender, Wild lavender, butterfly lavender Finnish: Tupsupäälaventeli, Ranskanlaventeli, Tupsulaventeli French: Lavande, Lavande Maritime, Lavande Papillon, Lavande Stéchade, Lavande Stéchas, Lavande À Toupet, Stoechas Arabique, lavande des Maures, lavande des Stoechades, lavande des Îles d’Hyères, lavande à fleurs alignées, stéchas, stéchas d’Arabie Galician: Cantroxo German: Ährenförmiger Lavendel, Schopf-Lavendel, Schopflavendel Greek: Agriolevánta (Αγριολεβάντα), Levánta (Λεβάντα), levánta tis Karías (λεβάντα της Καρίας) Gujarati: Lavendara No Phul Hebrew: Azoveyon dagul, אזוביון דגול, אֲזוֹבְיוֹן דָּגוּל Hindi: Dharu Hungarian: Spanyol Levendula, füzéres levendula Italian: Lavanda Di Monte, Lavanda Selvatica, Lavanda Stoechas, Steca, Stecaole, Stigadosso Kabyle: Amezzir Kashmiri: Kale Weouth Netherlands: Stechas Norwegian: Fransk Lavendel Persian : Jarub Dimagh, Ustkhuddus, اسطوخودوس Portuguese: Alfazema, Arçã, Rosmaninho, alfazema-brava, cabeçuda, lavândula, rasmonino, rasmono, rosmano, tomelo Russian: Lavanda stekhadskaya (Лаванда стэхадская) Slovak: Levanduľa hlávkovitá Spanish : Arçã, Astecados, Azaya, Cantahueso, Cantuerca, Cantueso, Cantueso Morisco, Cap D’ase, Estecados, Hierba De San Juan, Lavándula, Romero De Piedra, Romero Santo Tomillo, Tomillo Borriquero, almoraduz de cuello corto, azaya, espliego, flor del Corpus, flor del Señor, lavanda romana, romero de señor, rosmano, timosa, tomillo cantimpalo, tomillo cantueso, tomillo cantueso caballar, tomillo de flor morada, té de moro, lavande à toupet; lavande stéchade Swedish : Skärmlavendel Tunisian Arabic: Halhal (حلحال) Turkish : Karabaşotu, karabaş Urdu: Ustkhuddus Welsh: Lafant
Plant Growth Habit	Low-growing but mostly upright, erect, evergreen, perennial shrub
Growing Climates	Dry hills, garrigue, maquis shrub land, open woodlands, pastures, roadsides, disturbed sites, gardens, waste areas, waterways, mallee scrublands, lowland grasslands and disturbed grassy woodlands
Soil	Needs fast-draining, nutrient-poor, alkaline soil. Occasional pruning will help keep this lavender clean and blooming. This plant prefers poor soil conditions; it does not grow well in nutrient-rich, fertile soils. Gravel mulch is a great option for topping the soil around French lavender
Plant Size	Usually less than 60 cm tall, but occasionally reaching up to 1 m in height
Stem	Quadrangular, pubescent stems becoming woody and rough with age
Leaf	Leaves are greyish-green or silvery in color and softly hairy (i.e. pubescent). These small leaves are 1-3 cm long and 2-5 mm wide and are oppositely arranged along the stems and stalk less
Flowering season	May to August
Flower	Small tubular flowers are 5-8 mm long and are deep purple in color and are subtended by deep bluish-purple bracts 12-25 mm long. Their sepals are fused into a short tube (i.e. calyx tube) 4-6 mm long with many veins. The five petals are also fused into a tube (i.e. corolla tube) with five spreading lobes (i.e. corolla lobes). Flowers also have four yellow stamens and an ovary topped with a very short style.
Fruit Shape & Size	Schizocarp, brown, woody, dehiscent containing four seeds
Fruit Color	Green when young turning to brown as they mature
Seed	Seeds are about 2 mm across are almost round (i.e. sub-globular) and brown mottled with numerous darker spots
Taste	Bitter
Propagation	By seed or semi-hardwood cuttings
Season	July to September
Precautions	Patients having problems like diarrhea, dysentery, and Diabetes or pregnant women should avoid it or take it cautiously. For some people, it can make problems like nausea and vomiting.

Plant Description

French lavender is a low-growing but mostly upright, erect, evergreen, perennial shrub that normally grows less than 60 cm tall, but occasionally reaching up to 1 m in height. The plant is found growing in dry hills, garrigue, maquis shrub land, open woodlands, pastures, roadsides, disturbed sites, gardens, waste areas, waterways, mallee scrublands, lowland grasslands and disturbed grassy woodlands. The plant needs fast-draining, nutrient-poor, alkaline soil. Occasional pruning will help keep this lavender clean and blooming. The plant prefers poor soil conditions; it does not grow well in nutrient-rich, fertile soils. Gravel mulch is a great option for topping the soil around French lavender.

Stems

The stems are upright (i.e. erect or ascending) or occasionally creep along the ground for a short distance and then grow upwards (i.e. decumbent). They are square in cross-section (i.e. quadrangular) and densely covered in greyish-coloured hairs. Older stems are somewhat woody, rougher in texture, and rounded in cross-section.

Leaves

Like the stems, the leaves are greyish-green or silvery in color and softly hairy (i.e. pubescent). These small leaves are 1-3 cm long and 2-5 mm wide and are oppositely arranged along the stems and stalk less (i.e. sessile). They are long and narrow (i.e. linear or lanceolate) with rounded or somewhat pointed tips (i.e. obtuse or sub-acute apices). Their margins are entire, but are usually curved downwards (i.e. recurved).They are highly scented, especially when rubbed.

Flowers

Large numbers of inconspicuous tubular flowers are arranged in dense cylindrical clusters that is 2-5 cm long at the tips of the stems (i.e. in terminal spikes). These flower clusters are borne on stalks (i.e. peduncles) 1-2.5 cm long and are topped with up to five distinctive, purple or violet coloured, petal-like bracts (10-50 mm long). The small tubular flowers are 5-8 mm long and are deep purple in color and are subtended by deep bluish-purple bracts 12-25 mm long. Their sepals are fused into a short tube (i.e. calyx tube) 4-6 mm long with many veins. The five petals are also fused into a tube (i.e. corolla tube) with five spreading lobes (i.e. corolla lobes). Flowers also have four yellow stamens and an ovary topped with a very short style. They give off a strong lavender perfume and flowering occurs from late winter through to summer (i.e. from August to January), but is most apparent during spring.

Fruit

The fruit (i.e. a schizocarp) is brown, woody and splits apart when mature into four seeds (i.e. mericarps or nutlets). These seeds are about 2 mm across are almost round (i.e. sub-globular) and brown mottled with numerous darker spots. They are produced during late spring and early summer.