A New Fragrance in Farming....Growing Lavender at high altitude
As a user of essential oils, it occurred to Carol that Lavender is a popular scent and with a little research she thought that it might just grow here in the North Fork Valley. To their surprise and delight, within two months of moving to the Valley they noticed an announcement for the very first meeting of the Lavender Association of Western Colorado. It was a sign!
At 6,200 feet elevation, their farm is nestled at the base of Lamborn Mountain and near the upper limit for growing lavender, but the Schotts are finding the climate suites their crop of choice. Through their participation in the Lavender Association and consultation with the University of Colorado Extension Service they’ve learned that better quality essential oils may actually be produced at higher elevations. The Extension Service works to promote alternative agricultural products and provides both expertise and advice to many of our local farmers.
English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family. Considered one of the more nostalgic fragrances there are records of Lavender uses dating back to the 19th century. It’s a great all around scent, generally associated with a light, clean fragrance that promotes a soothing experience and while many folks think of it as a feminine fragrance, with a bit of this or that you can change it from a feminine floral to a very masculine floral. It fits well with soaps, colognes, perfumes and as a general room scent so it serves many purposes. It’s also used in gardens and landscapes, as culinary herbs and commercially for the extraction of essential oils.
Carol’s goal is to produce high quality therapeutic oils or “Essential oils”. Lavender oil is extracted mostly from the flowers and buds of the lavender plant. Come midsummer James and Carol harvest their plants to begin the process. They dry some of the plants for use as bouquets or remove the bud for use as culinary lavender. The rest are distilled for obtaining essential oil and hydrosol. During the process steam passes through the plant material. As it cools it condenses, dripping into a ready jar. The oil rises to the top and is separated using a separatory funnel. What is left is a hydrosol, or flower water, which has similar properties to the essential oil, but is much less concentrated.
Lamborn Mountain Farmstead is producing at least 10 different varieties of oils and each has a slightly different fragrance and use. “That’s the fun part for us,” Carol says. They are all different and they are all useful in aromatherapy.
Aromatherapy is a growing field that uses plant materials, aromatic plant essential oils, and hydrosols for the purpose of altering mood, cognitive, psychological or physical wellbeing. For folks that are just getting into aromatherapy, Carol says that Lavender oil, “is a common denominator; an all purpose oil”. It is antiseptic and anti-bacterial and, unlike many essential oils, can be used directly on the skin for such uses as a burn ointment or on insect stings and bites or simply for the relaxing fragrance. (James is certainly an advocate, claiming the healing powers he experienced after using the oil on a burn he sustained last fall). The hydrosol can be used in similar ways, either on the skin as a refresher, as a calming room spray, or even as a non-toxic way to clean glass.
In addition to the oils, it is not surprising that Lavender is edible and that its use in food preparation is also becoming very popular. James and Carol have spent time experimenting with recipes and combinations to expand her uses of the plants and she’s found that cooking with the flowers and leaves can add a wonderful flavor to a wide assortment of dishes. Flowers, buds and leaves can be used fresh, as well as dried. They are close to rosemary, sage, and thyme and combining them with fennel, oregano, rosemary, thyme, sage, and savory make for some delicious flavor treats.
The key to cooking with lavender, according to Carol, is to experiment; starting out with a small amount of flowers, and adding more as you go. The flowers add a beautiful color to salads and can be substituted for rosemary in many bread recipes. Flowers look beautiful and taste good too in a glass of champagne, with chocolate cake, or as a garnish for sorbets or ice creams but Lavender lends itself to savory dishes also, from hearty stews to wine-reduced sauces.
A good place to start your experiments in edible Lavender would be to sample the meats produced right there at the Farmstead. In addition to their annual Lavender crop, James and Carol are raising Grassfed lamb and are building a small herd of Grassfed Scottish Highland Cattle. They have meat, cheese and Lavender products such as goat milk soap, lotions, dried and fresh bouquets, sachets, natural bath powder, culinary lavender buds, lavender Earl Grey tea mix, herbs de Provence, and more but call ahead for availability and a tour.
It’s summertime in the North Fork Valley and I guess you could say that everything’s coming up purple at the Lamborn Mountain Farmstead and that’s just the way James and Carol like it. Their integrated farmstead is committed to organic, biodynamic and sustainable farming methods and their goal is to produce the finest products possible.
For more information about Lamborn Mountain Farmstead go to: www.lambornmountainfarmstead.com or stop by the farm on Sunday, July 12th during the 5th Annual Lavender Festival.
At 6,200 feet elevation, their farm is nestled at the base of Lamborn Mountain and near the upper limit for growing lavender, but the Schotts are finding the climate suites their crop of choice. Through their participation in the Lavender Association and consultation with the University of Colorado Extension Service they’ve learned that better quality essential oils may actually be produced at higher elevations. The Extension Service works to promote alternative agricultural products and provides both expertise and advice to many of our local farmers.
English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family. Considered one of the more nostalgic fragrances there are records of Lavender uses dating back to the 19th century. It’s a great all around scent, generally associated with a light, clean fragrance that promotes a soothing experience and while many folks think of it as a feminine fragrance, with a bit of this or that you can change it from a feminine floral to a very masculine floral. It fits well with soaps, colognes, perfumes and as a general room scent so it serves many purposes. It’s also used in gardens and landscapes, as culinary herbs and commercially for the extraction of essential oils.
Carol’s goal is to produce high quality therapeutic oils or “Essential oils”. Lavender oil is extracted mostly from the flowers and buds of the lavender plant. Come midsummer James and Carol harvest their plants to begin the process. They dry some of the plants for use as bouquets or remove the bud for use as culinary lavender. The rest are distilled for obtaining essential oil and hydrosol. During the process steam passes through the plant material. As it cools it condenses, dripping into a ready jar. The oil rises to the top and is separated using a separatory funnel. What is left is a hydrosol, or flower water, which has similar properties to the essential oil, but is much less concentrated.
Lamborn Mountain Farmstead is producing at least 10 different varieties of oils and each has a slightly different fragrance and use. “That’s the fun part for us,” Carol says. They are all different and they are all useful in aromatherapy.
Aromatherapy is a growing field that uses plant materials, aromatic plant essential oils, and hydrosols for the purpose of altering mood, cognitive, psychological or physical wellbeing. For folks that are just getting into aromatherapy, Carol says that Lavender oil, “is a common denominator; an all purpose oil”. It is antiseptic and anti-bacterial and, unlike many essential oils, can be used directly on the skin for such uses as a burn ointment or on insect stings and bites or simply for the relaxing fragrance. (James is certainly an advocate, claiming the healing powers he experienced after using the oil on a burn he sustained last fall). The hydrosol can be used in similar ways, either on the skin as a refresher, as a calming room spray, or even as a non-toxic way to clean glass.
In addition to the oils, it is not surprising that Lavender is edible and that its use in food preparation is also becoming very popular. James and Carol have spent time experimenting with recipes and combinations to expand her uses of the plants and she’s found that cooking with the flowers and leaves can add a wonderful flavor to a wide assortment of dishes. Flowers, buds and leaves can be used fresh, as well as dried. They are close to rosemary, sage, and thyme and combining them with fennel, oregano, rosemary, thyme, sage, and savory make for some delicious flavor treats.
The key to cooking with lavender, according to Carol, is to experiment; starting out with a small amount of flowers, and adding more as you go. The flowers add a beautiful color to salads and can be substituted for rosemary in many bread recipes. Flowers look beautiful and taste good too in a glass of champagne, with chocolate cake, or as a garnish for sorbets or ice creams but Lavender lends itself to savory dishes also, from hearty stews to wine-reduced sauces.
A good place to start your experiments in edible Lavender would be to sample the meats produced right there at the Farmstead. In addition to their annual Lavender crop, James and Carol are raising Grassfed lamb and are building a small herd of Grassfed Scottish Highland Cattle. They have meat, cheese and Lavender products such as goat milk soap, lotions, dried and fresh bouquets, sachets, natural bath powder, culinary lavender buds, lavender Earl Grey tea mix, herbs de Provence, and more but call ahead for availability and a tour.
It’s summertime in the North Fork Valley and I guess you could say that everything’s coming up purple at the Lamborn Mountain Farmstead and that’s just the way James and Carol like it. Their integrated farmstead is committed to organic, biodynamic and sustainable farming methods and their goal is to produce the finest products possible.
For more information about Lamborn Mountain Farmstead go to: www.lambornmountainfarmstead.com or stop by the farm on Sunday, July 12th during the 5th Annual Lavender Festival.