The internet gives us instant knowledge but it can also overwhelm you with information.  The beautiful fragrant Lavender plant is no exception. Products, recipes and gardening tips abound. Just 5 minutes of scanning lavender-related  articles and I am  buried. What stands out the most is the wide assortment of names by which lavender is referenced. How does one sort it all out?  Lavender it seems is not singular in it’s scent, appearance or names. My beloved lavender parades shades of purple and blue, has variances in its fragrance and has multiple names.

Mobster Nicknames and Lavender Types

I wondered how I could best understand all the nuances regarding the many names Lavender is referenced by. I have a love of film and chuckled when I realized that that it all started to sound like a comic scene from Robert DeNiro’s movie, ANALYZE THIS. By introduction as the new Consigliere, the actor Billy Crystal shares his various nicknames:  “My name is Ben Sobel-lioni…I am also known as BENNY the GROIN, SAMMY the SCHNOZZ, ELMER the FUDD, TUBBY the TUBA, and once as MISS PHYLLIS LEVINE”

It was the perfect framework to help disseminate the multiple words used to describe types of lavender. Here it goes.  (This is best read with a mobster accent with shoulder shrugs and hand motions.)

Lavender, Please Introduce Yourself!

Lavender, it’s da name I am known best by.

But to some of you I am known by my Botanical name Lavandula which I sometimes spell with an “e”, Lavendula.  Sorry for the confusion but it is what it is. Bada boom! Bada bing!

I am also known by my Latin names Lavendula Angustifolia and Lavendula Intermediate (intermedia).

If you know me as L. Angustifolia then you are aware that I was formerly known as Lavandula officinalis but you may refer to me now also as English Lavender,  Old  English Lavender, True Lavender, and  Common Lavender.

(clear your throat – stay in character, it makes it so much more fun to read!)

To those of you who know me by my L. x intermedia moniker, may also get my attention if you called me Lavandin the Hybrid or even Dutch Lavender.

I mean no disrespect, but those who know me as L. Stoechas  and L. Dentata should refer to me as  Spanish and French Lavender respectively.

Ah Fuhgeddaboutit! I actually go by so many names you don’t wanna know.  You can just call me Lavender, which for you, I will always answer to!

Want to know how to grow this timeless bloom? Check out my blog Lavender,  How Dost Thou Grow? for all the details.