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Love letter from Ming

Starting Folgate Harvest 2011
Ming Harvesting Folgate
Ming Harvesting Folgate

A place that has a special meaning to me is on a beautiful and serene island called Whidbey Island. It is called Lavender Wind Farm. At first glance the farm seems small and insignificant, but as you walk into the farm you can see and smell the abundance and varieties of lavender plants.

Ming Harvesting Grosso
Ming Harvesting Grosso

The shop is filled to the brim with everything made from lavender: candles, cookies, soaps and most important of all, essential oil.The bouquets of lavender hanging from the ceiling fill the quaint shop with such a strong scent of lavender that you can almost taste it.

Buzz buzz, the busy worker bees fly past the ear as you walk along the lavender labyrinth. The never ending rows of lavender make it almost impossible to escape the lavender maze.

Ming Hanging Folgate to Dry
Ming Hanging Folgate to Dry

My eyes are drawn to a sea of different shades of purples, blues and pinks. Along the path where the line of trees separate the fields, giant sunflowers topple over each other.

Workers cut and bundle each bunch of lavender with gentle care and ease: a symphony of lavender. A worker tosses the variety they are harvesting today, grosso, the most fragrant, towards me. The smell is very rustic and poignant when you bring the buds straight to your nose which sets itself apart from the other varieties.

Ming Modeling New Dress
Ming Modeling New Dress

At the end of the day when the sun is setting, the orange and red combat the shades of purples, blues and pinks to create a picturesque moment. Everything is calm and peaceful making Lavender Wind Farm a place that has a special meaning to me. A place that is luxurious and inviting because of the calm and soothing effects of the scent of lavender.

 

– Text First posted on Oct 8, 2013 on Facebook by Ming Tong Lane. Pictures, that have been taken through the years, added by Sarah Richards for this post.