I have been doing my first harvest of lavender this week. I have 4 plants (lost one to the winter this past year), and they have been loaded with blooms for this first harvest! I have gathered so much to dry, I already have more than any past year. And there will be 1-2 more harvests yet to go!
I did have a brilliant idea this year (sometimes it takes me awhile). I had been drying the lavender hung upside down in bunches in my husband's office, as there are drying hooks above the windows there. But this year, it dawned on me that, as lavender is a natural moth repellent, I would be smarter to dry the herb in my studio, near my yarn shelves. DUH! We don't have a big problem with moths, but, hey, it doesn't cost me anything to be smart, does it?
So what is ahead? Lavender eye pillows for me and fellow migraine sufferers (it really does help!); lavender shortbread; lavender pound cake; lavender tea; and lavender blueberry cheesecake (I recently had some of this, and my mouth waters to even think of it!) Lavender is one of my favorite flavors, along with clove. Both are special treats: lavender for the summer and clove for the winter. And both must be savored as special treats in small amounts. It will be hard for me this summer, with such a huge harvest, to remember that 'small amount' bit! Lavender grows so well here, the area will be having it's first Lavender Festival this month. A new cookbook is promised. I can hardly wait!
3 comments:
beautiful...I love lavender and have grown some successfully. Love to make lavender wands with it and use it in recipes. Hopefully I will have some on my plants this summer, or next,
I am thrilled to learn that lavender is a moth repellent. I am putting together a sweet cottage in an abandoned bunk house by our upper pond and have been wondering how I could keep the moths away from the bed. Does it have to be fresh lavender or will dried work?
Dried lavender works great! I use it in my wardrobe, and where I store my tapestries. I try to change it out every year, though.
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