Ahhhh!

 

Tis the ultimate of mornings today.  

Freshly manicured lawns. 

Birds singing a variety of songs in the woods, atop the trees, in the skies. 

Two geese at rest but vigilant in the second pasture guarding their special spot and maybe some eggs. 

Deer moving and grazing in a far-off spot near the woods on the Meserve Preserve. 

Sunshine, blue sky. 

Horses a bit animated as they realize that today meant a trip to the round pen and a few bites of grass to go along with their hay for breakfast. 

They'll have full tummies when the farrier comes at 11. 

Yesterday's cabbage and lettuce transplants standing strong after their first night in the garden soil. 

An iconic sight with pretty black, white and brown Bridie lying on a hillside of green grass. 

Yes, "Ahhhh." 

That's the emotion on this spring morning in 2024.

And, I like it all.  

Akasha and her friend Drew with their lavender items on display at the local Farmers' Market. 

In other news, my friend Akasha Riener, one of the familiar and helpful staff members at The Flower Farm on East Selle Road, sent me some more information about her neighborhood lavender enterprise. 

I have learned, in a few conversations with Akasha, that there's much to learn about lavender.

It all appears to be good, so today I'll share some highlights of what she has shared with me. 

A little history on the business which has its roots in a lavender patch on Forest Siding Road in Selle. 

from Akasha:

Scott and Michelle Griffith own the lavender farm. Several years ago Scott asked John at the Flower Farm if he knew anyone to help, and John kindly mentioned my name.

 

I decided to join them in operating the lavender farm and spent the first season learning as much as I could about the plant and the process! Scott and Michelle blessed my boyfriend Drew and me with the opportunity to take over.

 

We are very excited, but we are also a bit overwhelmed with trying to accomplish everything with just the two of us, along with Drew working full time at Litehouse and me full time seasonally at the Flower Farm, and house/pet sitting and caring for my own large vegetable garden.

 

The online marketing is slow going with a learning curve, but we're making progress. We're focusing our online presence in Etsy to begin with and that is in the beginning stages. For now our products are only available at the Flower Farm, Ebay and Etsy.

 

We haven't been able to spend the time to make the online listings very polished yet. We plan to expand our offerings with homemade lavender products such as soaps, face creams, pet supplies and more, maintaining our stringent quality standards including only organic ingredients.

 

The first step is selling enough to hire help in the pruning, picking and stilling process. Nearly four acres of lavender and over 2,000 plants are a lot for the two of us!

Our copper still is a major component of our quality, which you can read about in the brochure.

Essentially, many farms, especially big ones, use cheaper stainless steel stills which require the oil be aged to remove sulfates. This really changes the scent in a way which I find inferior. Smell our fresh, unaged, copper distilled oil and compare to one that is aged and I'm sure you'd notice the difference.

 

Copper holds the sulfates as the oil-laden steam rises through it, so the inside of the still is covered with brownish red sulfates and must be scrubbed off between runs. 

The only other major note is how useful lavender is. It should be a component of first aid kits, child and pet care, health and beauty, and culinary use. Our use sheets barely scratch the surface. There are many scientific, peer-reviewed studies proving lavender's benefits.

 

As Akasha suggests in her brochure:  what is there that lavender can't do?

Just the fact that it helps me get better sleep is enough for me, but knowing that it curbs anxiety and itching and pain and even improves moods---that information  offers lots of reasons to give it a try. 

There's plenty to see and to purchase at the website listed below, and more to learn by reading the Selle Valley Lavender brochure. 

Just click on the images for better size. 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/sellevalleylavender/?etsrc=sdt#items

I heard from Dick Gooby yesterday.  It seems that the cat is running the household at the ranch in Montana.

  Dick, you provide some great stories.  If I praise you more, will you work harder at writing those stories? 

🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱🐭🐭🐭🐭🐭

Gooby Ranch Report:

 

Last December I wanted a house cat that would sit on my lap.  When the cat is sitting on my lap it helps keep me warm so we don’t have to have the stove quite as hot. That save us lots of wood.

We got her when she was a month old.  Since we got her, she hardly ever sits on my lap.  Instead, she is going through the house looking for mice.   Whenever Amber catches a mouse, she brings it to show me.  I give her lots of praise.

Timber, our little Toy Aussie, thinks Amber is his personal hunter.  Every time Amber brings a mouse to show me, Timber thinks she caught it for him. Every now and then Amber catches more mice than she can eat.  When she does, she gives the mouse to Timber as a present.

She has pretty much cleaned out the mice in the house.  Since then Amber hasn’t been able to give any mice to Timber, so he told her about all the mice outside.

Amber began begging to go outside.  Timber goes to the door with Amber and yips for Mary Ann to let Amber out.  Mary Ann thought she was too little but finally she relented.

I didn’t realize how overrun we were with mice.  Amber brings in at least 10 mice every day to show us what she caught.   We make sure we brag on her and tell her what a great job she is doing.  Amber just loves to be bragged on.  The more we brag, the harder she hunts.