The Origin of Lavandin
Lavandin Is a hybrid plant developed in 1900 by crossing true lavender (L. angustifolia) with spike lavender or aspic (L. latifolia) and is larger than lavender with a woody stem and blue or gray flowers.
It is grown extensively in France and often preferred by the perfume industry for its oil and the flowers for sachets, potpourri and craft work. This hybridization is due to foraging insects, mainly bees, going from flower to flower transporting pollen from one species to another. This phenomenon was verified in 1927 in the Chiris Company laboratories in Grasse, France. Artificial pollenization of aspic by lavender pollen enabled production of six seeds which, when planted, produced two individuals identified as “lavandin”.