While Santa Rita Hills Lavender Farm is in the off-season, many would be visitors to the Santa Barbara County wonder whether they will be able to see the lavender in bloom, because the lavender at their house is blooming beautifully now. As we have received this question more frequently as of late , its time to step out from inside the farmstand to explain how not all lavender is created equal. Some lavender varieties are better then others depending upon the circumstances.
Lavender is not just the name of one specific type of bush but is instead is genus that covers hundreds of different plants, all of them with different types of flowers, essential oils, and flowering times. Don’t ask me to name all of the different varieties, but what I can do, is teach you about the particular varieties of lavender that we deal grow on our farm. The lavender in the above and below pictures is the crowning jewel of our field, the Grosso variety of lavender (Latin name lavandula angustifolia). This variety of lavender originally comes from England and is primarily grown in France for the thriving perfume industry. While these plants are indeed spectacular and produce an abundant and fragrant oil, which we use in all our products, they only bloom in late June and early July thus losing most of their vibrancy within 2 months of flowering.
This is what we on the farm colloquially call, Home Depot Lavender. The reason for this name? It is the variety of lavender that you can find at Home Depot. We have many of these plants around the house as ornamentals, but while these plants flower year round and add a vibrance to any garden, the lavender buds themselves are worthless. The distillation from the Grosso lavender we grow produces 10 times the essential oil distilled from the Home Depot lavender. Our lavender distillation of essential oil is both vibrant and luscious smell and color, making it a truly unique product.
This is not to say that the Home Depot Lavender is bad, far from it. It just means that the Home Depot lavender is best for landscaping not for distilling. While we may not have any lavender blooming in the field in the offseason, have no fear, we still have plenty of seasonal flowers blooming now, so be sure to check out stop in and enjoy the farmstand or check us out at the store here.
