The Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year has passed, and with it the harvest season begins at Jersey Lavender. The plants need to be in full bloom to extract the best oil. Each day, more flowers appear, and with the long, hot summer days and occasional night rain, the lavender fields become more vibrant and colourful.
The waves of colour move gently with the summer breeze, the grasses mingling with the lavender. The stills are brought to life again, some bay initially processed and distilled. Soon the lavender will take its turn. Meanwhile the scent wafts gently on the heat waves of summer, the humid air diffusing the scent around the farm.
The newly planted lavender is being looked after in the outer field, and beyond that, the wild lavender meadow is alive with bees and butterflies. Here you’ll catch a glimpse of lilac amongst the wild golden grasses, the contrast is truly stunning. amongst the gold and lilac you’ll also spot the tall spikes of the beautiful Greater Evening Primrose and Mullein. Tiny pink wildflowers also mingle in the grasses with yarrow, vetch and wild carrot.
Not forgetting the rosemary and eucalyptus plants and trees, which will also be distilled to restock our stores of pure essential oils, that along with aromatic waters, are blended with base creams, etc., to make up the range of herbal bodycare products we stock in the shop at Jersey Lavender, as well as in our online store.
The weather has been hot and dry for quite some time, the kind of climate that our herbs love! With the natural sandy soil of the farm, this makes for very good growing conditions – it’ll be interesting to see and smell the new essential oil batches when they are mature after 6 months or more!
As well as the natural wildlife, we have chickens that roam freely, their number has swelled recently, so look out for the cute chicks scratching around the place!