Is there anything lavender can't do? Now visible on the trendiest menus, lavender can be substituted wherever you might have used rosemary. It is best picked fresh from your garden - dried lavender is stronger but has a dusty texture - from home-grown plants that have not been sprayed. I like the flavour from the English angustifolia varieties (another to add to my shopping list), which have a lemony tang and are sweeter than the more camphor-like latifolia or hybrids. I use the buds only, bruising them with a mortar and pestle or sprinkling parsimoniously. Try popping lavender buds in your sugar jar for a few weeks then using it to sweeten baking or tisanes; use the stems when grilling fruit kebabs; float a few buds in a glass of indifferent bubbly; sprinkle on toasted goat's cheese, with which it has a curious affinity, or try these easy recipes (above right) to waken some of the 180 perfume notes that make up this evocative fragrance. Order plants now for April/May delivery from downderry-nursery.co.uk; arneherbs.co.uk; lavender.co.uk; and longbarn.co.uk. Soil: lavender needs a well-drained neutral to alkaline soil, though L. stoechas and L. x intermedia can thrive in a slightly acid soil. Mix in grit to improve drainage. Site: plant in a sunny position away from overhanging trees or in pots. Pot: in a compost 50/50 mix of grit and multi-purpose compost. Over-wintering: pot-grown tender lavenders should be given protection undercover in light airy conditions. Water sparingly from below. Hardy pot-grown plants should be raised to prevent root rot from standing in water. Pruning of hardy lavenders: chop them back to just 22cm (8½in) immediately after flowering, especially L. x intermedia. Tender lavenders should be deadheaded constantly to encourage flowering and chopped back occasionally to keep in shape. Watering: lavenders are drought tolerant so need no water once established. Melt and cool 2 tbsp butter. Add 225g sugar and two beaten eggs plus two extra whites. Sift in 450g plain flour, plus a teaspoon of baking powder and a pinch of salt. Add a teaspoon of fresh lavender buds. Mix to form a stiff dough and shape into four logs. Place on an oiled tray and bake for 15 minutes at 170C/325F/Gas 3. When cool, cut into diagonal slices an inch thick and place on two oiled trays Bake for a further 45 minutes at 130C/275F/Gas½. Cool. Try biscotti with fennel seeds and pistachios or rosemary and walnuts. Melt 200g caster sugar in 450ml water in a saucepan. Add a tablespoon of fresh lavender buds and simmer for 10 minutes. Leave to infuse for a couple of hours. Sieve out the lavender and add 2 tbsp each of lemon juice and vodka. Pour into a container and freeze. Mash, then return to the freezer, then blend until smooth. Sweeping in sharp sand on my grass paths to lighten the soil and improve growth.