There have been quite a few new shapes in lavenders over the past 10 years, with ruffles, frills, and pinks, white and different shades of purple. Not only beautiful and fragrant, lavender is a great attractant to bees.

There has been a lot of discussion on the causes of declining populations of bees after the January 2016 European Food Safety Authority (Efsa) review on the ban of certain pesticides. This could pave the way for a EU ban on three neonicotinoid pesticides that are believed to be partially responsible for the decline of bee colonies.