How to grow a chamomile lawn ... Fragrant chamomile ... Lawn chamomile seat

How to Grow a Chamomile Lawn

A chamomile lawn is a wonderful addition to any garden, bringing sweet fragrant aromas every time you walk across it and is associated with style and elegance.

Growing a chamomile lawn is not difficult but you do need to have a well-drained acidic soil. Chamomile is very low growing and so makes an ideal herb for creating a lawn.

How to prepare the chamomile lawn

Growing a chamomile lawn is the same as a normal lawn. Select the area and then dig it through, removing all weeds and stones. After raking the area you will need to dig into the top layer a suitable balanced lawn fertilizer. This should be applied at 35g to one square meter of soil.

How to prepare the chamomile lawn with the incorrect soil

If your soil is chalky or retains a lot of water, then I suggest you select a small area for the lawn as you will need to alter the PH of your soil with a suitable compost. This could be costly and time consuming if you are trying to convert a larger area.

Dig in a large amount of well drained soil and some compost for acid loving plants. Ask for advice at your local garden centre or nursery when purchasing the compost.

Planting the chamomile lawn from seedlings

Plant out the chamomile seedlings 15cm apart in rough but not perfect rows. This will ensure that the plants cover the area at a faster rate when growth starts.

Planting the chamomile lawn from seed

Sow the seed into compost in seed trays, thin out when they are large enough to handle. When the seedling has grown into a small plant they are ready for plating out as detailed above.

This is recommended for cost saving purposes if you are planting a large chamomile lawn. You can only plant the flowering varieties of chamomile if you are sowing seeds. However, these varieties are not as suitable as the variety called Treneague. This variety grows lower and more densely and requires less attention.

Caring for the chamomile lawn

Water the lawn well after planting and keep moist until the plants have established themselves are starting to spread successfully.

The lawn can be trimmed at this point with a lawnmower, or the shears depending on the size of the lawn. If using the lawnmower, ensure the blades are set on the highest setting. Keep the grass cut frequently to ensure growth.

If you find that there are a few empty or thinner patches from time to time, sprinkle some normal fine variety grass seed over the area needing attention. Alternatively, plant a couple of seedlings.

Planting the chamomile lawn from runners

Roman chamomile can be cultivated from runners of existing plants. Plant these in spring or late summer. Ensure the soil is free from weeds and avoid treading on the plants until the lawn has started to take shape.

Grow a chamomile seat

If your garden soil in not suitable for a chamomile lawn, you can always plant up a chamomile seat. The fragrant aromas will be released each time the seat is used!