In my dream life, I live in a wonderful old farmhouse in Tuscany in the center of a field of lavender. In real life, I live in the center of Los Angeles, but that just might be the second best place for a lavender lover like me. This is the perfect environment for those lovely plants with their evergreen foliage and fragrant purple flowers. Los Angeles, after all, has the same Mediterranean climate the plant loves. If you haven’t grown lavender, here are three reasons why you just might want to add this fragrant plant to your garden (or at least a pot on the patio).

1. Lavender is an herb and as such, you can use it in cooking. One of my favorite ways to use it is as a tea, especially as an iced tea. Just throw a handful of lavender flowers into the teapot and let it steep – alone or with other herbs such as mint like Martha's Stewart's Lavender-Mint Iced Tea. The aroma is wonderful and poured over ice, it’s delicious. Another way I use lavender is to throw a couple sprigs in with the meat I grill. It’s especially good with lamb.
2. It has a long history as a medicinal remedy and has been used for everything from an antibacterial ingredient to a sedative. While you won’t find many doctors prescribing lavender as a tonic, many aromatherapy devotees do say it’s has a calming and purifying affect on our health. I can attest that a few drops of lavender oil in the bath, along with lighting a couple of lavender candles, does wonders for me after a hectic day. I also like to add a couple sprigs to a small vase next to my bed. Even dried, the aroma a great stress reducer.
3. Lavender is easy to grow, especially here in Los Angeles. It doesn’t like a lot of water, which makes it a great drought-resistant plant. Give it some good, well-draining soil and a lot of sun and you’ll be rewarded with evergreen foliage and show stopping flowers.