Tournefortia gnaphalodes

sea lavender

Sea lavender is an effective and distinctive sand dune stabilizer. While one of our plants has grown into a tree over five feet tall, most sea lavender stays close to the ground and spreads horizontally.

The name leads many people to smell the leaves and flowers with hopes of encountering a lavender-like fragrance. Most people, however, perceive little or no fragrance to the plant. The name was probably derived from the resemblance of this plant’s leaves to lavender’s rather than a similar scent.

Root rot is the most common reason why sea lavender plants don’t succeed in the landscape. While they will prefer some moisture in the soil immediately after planting, they quickly adopt a preference for drier soils once established. As the plant is accustomed to a life on the coastline, it prefers sandy soils and full sun and can tolerate salt spray very well.

This plant is used against chiggers in some capacity, but it is unclear whether the leaves are burned to disperse them from an area or if leaves are applied to the itchy welts caused by chiggers. Both uses are probable since there are records of sea lavender leaves being burned in houses to drive fleas out and also use of the plant in baths to clean wounds and treat skin problems.

There is reluctance amongst Caribbean natives to talk about their use of the plant because it can be used to induce abortion. As with other plants that can be used for this purpose, proper dosage can help ease delivery.