Courtesy of Oregon Lavender Festival

Courtesy of Oregon Lavender Festival

Our lavender is just coming into bloom and it’s gorgeous. We use it as a hedge throughout our rose garden, and now the purple and blue spikes rock gently with bumblebees perched atop the blossoms, like a sway pole in a circus.

It’s a reminder that lavender festivals are just around the corner. If the lavender fields of Provence are not on your garden travel agenda, visit one of the lavender festivals here in the U.S.  Both Washington and Oregon have cultivated viable, thriving agribusinesses of lavender and many of the region’s farms will be open during the festivals.

Here are a few Lavender Festivals around the country:

Roswell, GA: Barrington Hall’s 2015 Lavender Festival

Barrington Hall, Roswell GASaturday, June 13, 2013

Roswell, GA

Held on the grounds of historic Barrington Hall from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.

Activities include lavender wand making, creating lavender bath salts, and presentations on lavender plantings. Lavender infused specialty foods include lavender ice cream, lavender cookies, lavender vinaigrette and lavender tabbouleh.

The festival is inspired by the legacy of Evelyn Simpson, great-granddaughter of Barrington King who co-founded the town of Roswell and built Barrington Hall in 1942. Evelyn singlehandedly expanded the lavish gardens on the property to include a section of lavender plantings which she used to make sachets and lavender wands, selling them to tourists and passers-by in an effort to make ends meet and help with the upkeep of the property.

Sequim, Washington: Sequim Lavender Festival 

July 17 – 19, 2015

Sequim, Washington
Sequim, Washington is known as the Lavender Capital of North America and this is the largest lavender event in the country, with eight farms on tour. The Street Fair showcases many products made from lavender grown locally in the Sequim-Dungeness Valley by members of the Sequim Lavender Growers Association. There are 45 different varieties of lavender for purchase, along with new flavors of lavender ice cream, smoothies, and possibly lavender pie.

Farms on tour:

Oregon Lavender Festival

July 11 – 12, 2015

(Photo courtesy of Oregon Lavender Festival)

Armada, Michigan: Michigan Lavender Festival

July 11 – 13, 2014

Armada, Michigan

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