![[ The Lure of Lavender: Reap and Sew ] ~ from Monterey Bay Spice]()
a. growing lavender
Lavender is native to the Mediterranean region and flourishes on the hillsides
of Southern Europe, while various cultivars and hybrids are cultivated
elsewhere. The vibrantly colored fields that grace the slopes of the Rhone Alps
in France is a spectacular sight that most people are familiar if only in
pictures, although the plant also occurs naturally throughout India, Africa and
even the Canary Islands. In The Complete Herbal of 1652, herbalist Nicholas
Culpeper wrote of lavender that, "Being an inhabitant almost in every garden, it
is so well known, that it needs no description."
In North America, growing lavender can be a challenge unless it is given a
chance to become well established early in the growing season, especially in
areas that experience harsh winters.
Generally, lavender prefers light,
well-drained soil and a generous supply of sunshine. The herb may be started
from seed in late spring, or propagated from hardwood cuttings or layering in
late summer. In the ornamental herb garden, lavender looks best if given a bit
of pruning in early spring to enhance its shape, but take care not to cut back
any old wood to ensure future seasons.
While the leaves of the plant may be
harvested for practical use, it is the flowers that are most prized.
Traditionally, the flowers are collected just before fully opened, slowly
air-dried and used to scent sachets, dream pillows, linen closets and dried
floral arrangements. The flowers are also widely used in soapmaking, perfumery
and in natural cosmetics. The blossoms are distilled to obtain a highly fragrant
essential oil.
![[ The Lure of Lavender: Scents and Delicate Sensibilities ] ~ from Monterey Bay Spice]()
b. a "loverly" look back
If you were to stroll through a London market in the early 1900s, you would
inevitably hear the flower girl pitching her wares to the crowd with, "Here’s
your sweet lavender; sixteen sprigs a penny that you’ll find my ladies, will
smell as sweet as any.”
A similar scene was characterized in the 1964 film
adaptation of the musical My Fair Lady and in the Broadway version that took
the stage nearly a decade earlier. Perhaps lavender played a role in the romance
that eventually blossomed between the story’s main characters, the spirited
young Cockney girl, Eliza Doolittle, and the proper phonetics specialist,
Professor Henry Higgins.
In Victorian England, it was widely held that carrying
lavender could lure a lover, and that dowsing your lover’s head with lavender
water would ensure fidelity. In our story, however, such overture was not
necessary since Henry professed his love for Eliza with the realization that he
had grown accustomed to her face—and the comprehension of her independence
from him.
Another persistent belief of the era was that the asp—a term erroneously used
to refer to a number of venomous snakes—preferred to make its nest among
lavender bushes. However, this was largely a myth promoted by peddlers to
justify fetching a higher price for collecting the flowers.
But that’s not where
Victorian melodrama involving this herb ends. Since lavender had been used for
centuries to counter hysteria, melancholy and other forms of nervosa, it was
considered indispensible wherever fine, delicate ladies were gathered. Indeed,
if a maiden should find herself faint and on the brink of collapse, a
handkerchief dampened with spirits of ammonia placed under her nose would have
facilitated her revival. Also known as smelling salts, the stirring aroma of
this classic antidote to sudden swooning was tempered by the calming influence
of lavender. Evidence that the practice of relying on the raw herb to keep the
knees steady is provided by the late 18th century Scottish dramatist and poet,
Joanna Baillie, who once wrote, “I'm sure if I had not put lavender on my pocket
handkerchief, like Mama, I should have fainted away.”
< lavender flowers are
harvested just before
they open fully
![[ The Lure of Lavender: Sachet your night away ] ~ from Monterey Bay Herb Company]()
