I think I can safely type those words now. This summer 2024 was brutal here in NorCal, wasn’t it? Seemed like it would never end, didn’t it? But this morning we finally turned on the heater a bit to take off the A.M. chill, so I’m hoping we’ve seen an end to summer’s hundred-plus degree days. Anyway, I’m running towards autumn full-tilt, and embracing it with sweater-clad arms and fuzzy
slippers.
You would think things would slow down for us on the lavender farm when summer makes way for autumn, wouldn’t you? It isn’t so much as a slow-down, though, as an actual pivoting towards other tasks. We now have to take the harvest we were given this summer (thank you, God!) and turn it into
what is known in the lavender industry as value-added products. These are all things the grower makes with their lavender that consumers use in their lives to give themselves the many benefits of lavender on a daily basis. At our farm, we are now turning our attention to making those value-added products, using specific varieties of our lavenders to make specific items.
You all know that we sell fresh and dried lavender bundles, but did you know that some varieties lend themselves much better to drying and preserving as dried lavenders than others do? Our favorite variety for dried bouquets is our English lavender variety, French Fields. French Fields’ name is a little confusing, I know, because the name is “French” but the variety is English! This lovely variety
has a beautiful purple hue to it; it keeps that hue after drying, so it makes excellent dried bouquets. We also use French Fields for value-added items such as swizzle sticks or garnish for cocktails because it keeps its color so beautifully when dried.
One of the biggest value-added items we make is our lavender essential oil, which we distill right here on our farm. We use many of our varieties for essential oil, most especially Irene Doyle and Maillette English lavenders, and Super, Impress Purple and Hidcote Giant Intermedia hybrids. I’ve shared with
our farmers market customers the differences in our essential oils, and how the varieties that we use have slightly different properties to them, depending on what you’re looking for. English lavenders produce less oil than hybrid, or Intermedia lavenders, as a general rule, and they also have less natural camphor content than the hybrid varieties. Both varieties can be used in diffusers, crafts, etc. but we generally recommend using English lavenders for nighttime use, as they have less natural camphor in the plants that translates into the oils. Selecting a favorite lavender oil, like selecting a favorite wine, is based on personal preference, so we encourage you to use our oil samplers to discover your favorite variety!
Hydrosol, as I’ve mentioned before, is another value-added product that is a result of our steam distillation process. Hydrosol is basically the water-soluble properties of any distilled plant material, in this case, lavender. Every essential oil that’s distilled on our farm also produces hydrosol, and we use all of our varieties to make our hydrosols. Hydrosol is fabulous no matter what lavender variety is used to make it. Lavender hydrosol has a tremendous number of uses. For instance, it is a natural skin care ingredient that you can use daily to improve your skin’s moisture content. Lavender hydrosol’s main constituents, linalool and linalyl acetate, are natural anti-inflammatory agents that may help reduce skin inflammation. Synthetic fragrances can cause various adverse reactions like skin irritation or contact dermatitis, for instance. Lavender hydrosol, being a natural product of steam distillation, can be used topically to soothe and calm the skin and help reduce redness after sun exposure. The cooling effect of lavender hydrosol is a welcome addition for a variety of applications. And even though we find lavender scent soothing, insects seem to think otherwise. Lavender hydrosol can be used to help keep pesky insects away. Lavender hydrosol also has great cleaning properties. It won’t harm solid surface countertops or floors, so it can be used straight out of our bottles to clean and freshen. With only a miniscule amount of essential oil in the hydrosol, it is a great way to refresh linens naturally without using synthetic agents or staining them with oils. It can even be used as a stain remover! Hydrosol is a wonderful product with a myriad of uses, and the best part is, it’s all completely natural.
Lavender sachet bags are another favorite value-added product at our farmers market booths. Our sachets are made from most of our varieties, with Hidcote Giant, French Fields, Silver Frost and Edelweiss prominent among them. The traditional use is to put them in a clothing drawer, but sachets can be used for so much more. Smelly running shoes? Pack a sachet in them between runs. Gym bag with your workout clothes inside? Toss in a sachet to keep the bag smelling fresh. Lull your child to sleep with a small sachet under their pillow or on their nightstand. Hang one from your rearview mirror or door handle to freshen your car naturally instead of using artificially scented car hangers. Make sure the bag is tied tight at the top and toss the sachet into your dryer for some natural scent on your clean clothes. Use them wherever you want a fresh scent made from natural materials.
Firestarters are another product we carry at our market booths. We make ours in order to use the entire plant, and not have to throw any of it away. Right now, we’re using the stems from our Melissa variety that we debudded for our culinary lavender, so we’re not throwing them away even after the buds are taken from them. We use everything here! Don’t be fooled by their name - firestarters are versatile little bundles that can be used in spring. summer and autumn activities as well as in winter fireplaces. Now that fall is here, firestarters are perfect little bundles to throw in your firepits for that wonderful warm autumn bonfire. With their natural insect-repelling aroma, lavender firestarters help keep the bugs away when you’re enjoying your firepit on cool autumn evenings. Firestarters also bring a bit of lavender taste and smell to your grill and barbeque. Toss them onto the coals for a bit of bougie on your steak, chicken or grilled veggies. And of course, don’t forget to use them to start that wonderful winter fire in your fireplace, to add a little sweet lavender aroma to the ambiance of a romantic fire.
Culinary lavender is our most recent value-added product, and what a great product it’s turning out to be! Currently, Melissa is a very popular culinary variety everywhere, as it has a mild flavor with hints of pepper. The Melissa variety is the first one we’ve begun using for culinary; we also plan to use Royal Velvet and Folgate as culinary varieties for some new products we have coming out. Culinary buds can be used in sweet recipes such as cookies and cakes (it pairs exceptionally well with lemon, honey, vanilla and mint) and in savory recipes (Herbs de Provence is a tried-and-true herb blend for all types of meat that incorporates lavender buds in the recipe.) We have seen culinary buds used in lemonade mixes, bagels, shortbread cookies (a personal favorite) and meat rubs. Lavender is an herb from the mint family that you will love once you start using it. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram, as we’ll soon be posting recipes there using our culinary buds.
Now that you have an idea of what we’re busy doing on the farm, I hope you’ll visit us at our farmers markets and pick up some of our value-added products to try. As the seasons change, so does our focus on different parts of farm life. We hope you’ll continue to follow along with us and watch us grow! Happy Fall, Y’all!