July 7
Blossom time is here, but not in the orchards. At Hood
River Lavender's wholesale farm, tucked in between a forest and a cherry
orchard on the West Side, the hillside of blooming lavender fills the
air with a heady scent, bringing a little of Provence to Hood River.
For the last two years Joel and Diane Orcutt have been
living and breathing lavender. On a two-and-a-half acre patch of land
they grow, process and market 30 different varieties of the aromatic flower,
then market it in many forms at artists' markets and festivals, and on
their Web site.
We love lavender, Diane says.
Joel and Diane have developed a successful cottage industry
out of their home, but the one thing they haven't been able to do is share
the experience of the farm itself with others, because it lies on private
property that has an adjoining residence. And they do get a lot of requests
from customers to visit the lavender field.
It's been crazy, Joel says. I've had people come right
to my door, asking, Where's the farm? But we really try to respect the
privacy of the people who live there.
Next year will be different...the Orcutts have leased
some property in Odell for another farm; this one designed as a destination
in itself.
They will join the growing number of small farmers across
the country who are blending agriculture with tourism to form agri-tourism.
There are three basic components a small farm needs
to find success in this new type of business: have something for visitors
to see, something for them to do, and something for them to buy. The site
for the new lavender farm is perfect for the couple's foray into agri-tourism:
it is just off the Fruit Loop; it sits atop Straight Hill Road, with a
commanding view of the valley and Mt. Adams (and even Mt. Hood, looking
the other direction); it has a bed and breakfast right next door; it will
offer u-pick sales; and it will include a Victorian-style cottage for
retail sales of their product line.
We're going to make it a nice place to go to just relax,
Joel says. There will be wide paths of lawn grass running through the
field, where people can sit or stroll, and I've been talking to local
bands about having live music. It will be so beautiful; and in the middle
of the day (at the current, wholesale farm), there are butterflies and
hummingbirds all over the place ...today I counted 24 butterflies just
in the area where I was working.
The target date for opening the u-pick farm is next
year's Memorial Day. In the meantime, Joel and Diane are kept busy with
the wholesale field, which is being harvested this week, and by participating
in farmers' markets and events such as Sternwheeler Days.
They get about 30-40 percent of their business from
their Web site (in December that figure was closer to 70 percent), but
their wholesale accounts are their real “bread and butter,” Joel says.
Of the two and a half acres of lavender on their wholesale
farm, about a half to two-thirds will be bundled and dried when the flowers
are about 1/3 bloomed; the rest will be allowed to bloom completely and
will then be distilled for lavender oil and hydrosol, or linen water.
Joel does his own distilling, and all of the products they sell, except
for the soap and candles, Diane makes herself.
Our home isn't much more than a production studio, Joel
laughs. We get this little piece of the kitchen and that's about it. Thank
God for mothers-in-law and neighbors!
Their product line shows that there are many ways to
enjoy lavender: in fresh or dried bouquets; dried and sewn into sachets,
pillows, and stuffed animals; distilled into oil or perfume; and made
into soaps and balms and other home and bath products. It even has culinary
uses.
People don't think of lavender as culinary... their
first thought is perfume, or soap, Diane says. But Provence (a variety
of lavender) is one of the herbs in herbs de Provence, and lavender has
many uses in cooking. I have some great recipes for lavender scones and
shortbread, also lemonade. In the fall they will be able to offer lavender
honey, considered top of the line, according to Joel. It's a sweet, quality,
in-demand honey, he says.
The Orcutts, who both grew up in Hood River, got into
the business because they wanted to find some way to utilize the land
that wasn't planted in orchards.
They researched what would grow in this area and found
that Hood River has similar terrain and is at a similar latitude to that
of France and England, both big lavender producers.
It's just a heck of a lot of fun, Joel says. And we
had a call from a media company last week telling us that Toyota was interested
in filming a commercial in which one of their vehicles would drive through
a field of lavender. I told him it would destroy an awful lot of my crop!
Not this year!
****
For more information, call Hood River Lavender at 386-9100
or toll-free,
888-LAV-FARM or visit www.lavenderfarms.net
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