Grosso lavender, scientifically known as Lavendula x intermedia ‘Grosso,’ is a woody perennial hybrid of English lavender and Portuguese lavender. Lavender hybrids of these parent plants are generally known as lavadins, and incorporate all the beauty and fragrance of English lavender with the resistance and tolerance of Portuguese lavender. Not just a favorite for beds, borders, or mass plantings in the home landscape, Grosso lavender is also the most widely cultivated lavender variety for its essential oils. Its long lasting blooms and fragrance are excellent for cut flowers, dry flowers, oil infusions, potpourri, and other crafts as well as in culinary and herbal recipes. This is also an excellent plant to grow for honeybees. Harvest the large, deep purple to blue blooms of Grosso lavender from mid to late summer, just as the buds open, on dewy mornings when blooms are laden with natural essential oils.