rain, snow, and Ray…
Morena It’s a late winter’s day; rain all around, snow on the hills and Ray LaMontagne oozing through the speakers. Yesterday we finished the last of the pruning. An annual event we usually try and complete before the first frosts of Autumn. We are a little behind this year, but the older Grosso plants are capable of handling a “haircut” despite the […]
Read more…a few months in lavender
A few months in lavender time have passed since we last posted! We had a busy summer with a fantastic crop of Grosso, the oil has great scent already. Our Pacific Blue was a little less prolific but that reflects the hard pruning we gave it last year. Again the scent is already maturing and taking on some great notes, probably […]
Read more…there are gnomes and genome’s in our lavender fields
A recent Canadian article outlines the range of genomes lurking in the lavender fields. A team of researchers, including University British Colombia’s Soheil Mahmoud, have recently sequenced the genome of lavender. “The best way to describe our findings is that we have built the roadmap for the discovery of the genetic elements that define lavender. Now researchers can follow our map and […]
Read more…Spring is slowly springing!
It’s true, Spring is slowly springing in the lavender fields. As I write, the first flowers are opening on some ornamental lavender we have adjacent to the house. Some of the stoechas (which originated from Europe) are well into bloom, with one variety covered in masses of long purple spikes. Stoechas, while not producing the quality or quantity of our Pacific Blue […]
Read more…the mists of time
If we turn back the mists of time we begin to understand that lavender mist is produced at the same time as the production of essential oils. A part of the distillation process, essential oils float to the top where they are removed, leaving behind a watery distillation. We call this lavender mist. Typically this diluted essential oil is less than […]
Read more…the colour purple…
It’s just past the shortest day , so time to put away your mid winter blues and replace them with mid winter “purples” and the thoughts of a lavender summer. We thought we’d celebrate with some famous and infamous quotes and stories about lavender to reflect on over winter…. “Forgiveness is the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed […]
Read more…of this and that (a brief history of lavender)
This months blog outlines a brief history of lavender. Winter suddenly arrived on Banks Peninsula this week with 120km hour winds, snow on the tops and a wind chill of 3C. It’s a great time to sit in front of the fire and reflect on this and that. In ancient times lavender was used for mummification and perfume by the Egyptians, […]
Read more…Haircuts and easy shopping
Autumn brings change and this months blog reflects that theme with haircuts (pruning), and free shipping top of mind. The first light frost and snow on the volcanic peaks means winter is well on it’s way. We can relax a little bit knowing our lavender has been well pruned (haircuts), weeded and ready to face winter. We prune our lavender as hard […]
Read more…lavender by the sea
With the first of the winter chills already hitting it’s a good time to reflect on the lavender farm’s location – lavender by the sea. One of the reasons we first chose this spot was the fantastic views down the length of Akaroa harbour. The aqua blue waters, and the view, stretch almost all the way the Akaroa Heads. While we haven’t […]
Read more…the (lavender) flow of life
The flow of life, at least in terms of our lavender, just turned another corner. Thanks to some great helpers and the cooperation of Tāwhirimātea (Maori god of weather), all our new seasons lavender oil is now safely in amber bottles and stored in the fridge. Read more… Our Pacific Blue is always an early harvest and this year the hot weather […]
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