Love your lavender? Visit these area farmsSubscriber Exclusive

Are you seeing purple? July is peak lavender season, and local lavender farms are fully in bloom and buzzing with happy bees. Nancy Watson, owner of Lacamas Lavender and Flower Farm, is a self-taught lavender farmer who discovered the plant’s soothing benefits when she was diagnosed with breast cancer 24 years ago, at age 44. “I was sick with chemo, sick with radiation, and I had all the time in the world,” Watson said. “I said, ‘I gotta fix myself.’ Lavender has that calming effect. It saved me.” She started out with about 10 lavender plants, though she had no idea how to take care of them. She took some classes and figured it out, and now she’s got 1,200 plants growing on her farm, she said. In past years, she’s opened the farm for U-pick days during peak bloom season, but now she sells so many lavender products through her website and her Etsy store, Nancy’s Lavender Farm, that she uses every bit of lavender she produces. Lavender is relatively easy to grow, she said. It just needs good drainage and lots of sun. It’s related to sagebrush, she said, so it’s hardy and drought-tolerant. Deer won’t eat it, but bees, butterflies and hummingbirds love it. “The best advice I tell everybody is ‘Don’t baby it,’ ” Watson said. “You don’t have to water it all the time and beg it to grow.” Here are details about six local farms where you can fulfill your lavender longings. Three farms offer U-pick lavender, and three other farms sell lavender products online. True lavender lovers will be delighted to learn that one farm even has an Airbnb where guests can pamper themselves with soothing views of lavender fields — at least as long as the lavender is blossoming. Lavender La Center welcomes visitors to stroll through blooming lavender fields at 33119 N.E. 24th Ave., La Center. The farm features 2,700 English and French lavender plants in 24 different varieties. Guests can pick their own lavender and browse a selection of handcrafted lavender products, including essential oils, dried lavender buds, lavender plants and lotion bars. The farm is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and noon to sunset on Sundays through the end of September. The farm also sells its products at the Salmon Creek Farmers Market and Ridgefield Farmers Market. Learn more at lavenderlacenter.com. Ridgefield Lavender, 6203 N.W. 172nd St., Ridgefield, will open its fields for U-pick lavender from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and on July 18. Enjoy a peaceful day on the farm as you pick your own bundles of lavender or purchase freshly cut lavender, sip lavender lemonade and browse handcrafted lavender products in the farm stand. Ridgefield Lavender also sells lavender products such as candles, lotion and hand soap at Ridgefield Mercantile, 418 Pioneer St., Ridgefield. Lavender oil is available to buy on the farm’s website. Learn more at ridgefieldlavender.com. Scented Acres, 13804 N.E. 117th Ave., Vancouver, is open by appointment only. Call 360-921-9737 to arrange a time to pick your own lavender for $8 a bundle or purchase freshly picked lavender for $10 per bundle. The gift shop is open to U-pick customers or by appointment. Visitors will find lavender lotions, creams, spritzer, lavender jams and culinary lavender. Guests also can buy lavender and salvia plants as well as some other varieties of blooming, pollinator-friendly plants. Some lavender products are available online at scentedacreslavender.com. Lacamas Lavender and Flower Farm is closed to U-pick customers, but its handmade lavender products are available to buy online at lacamasflowerfarm.com. Products include dried and fresh lavender, linen spray, goatmilk soap, garden salve, lotion and body butter, as well as boxed assortments of several products. Farm owner Nancy Watson makes all products by hand. She also sells lavender sachets and other products through her Etsy shop, etsy.com/shop/nancyslavenderfarm. Watson said about 25 percent of her products are sold in Washington and the rest is sold to customers across the country. Overseas shipping also is available. Watson said she’s happy to talk about lavender any time and will happily offer growing tips; call 360-852-6358. Lewis River Lavender, based in Ridgefield, sells its lavender products online at lewisriverlavender.com. Lavender lovers also can follow the company at instagram.com/lewisriverlavender or facebook.com/lewisriverlavender. The company offers a huge array of lavender products, including essential oil and beard oil, body spray, body butter, sachets, bath fizzes, goatmilk soap, candles, culinary lavender and lavender-infused raw honey. Gift boxes are available, and the company offers free shipping on orders over $75. Coop de Lavender in Hockinson offers several different lavender products through its website, coopdelavender.com, including dried lavender bundles, eco-friendly lavender deodorizers for laundry and other uses, lavender hydrosol, lavender oil and dried lavender sachets. The farm’s five-star-rated Airbnb is a “guest favorite” — that is, it’s in the top 5 percent of Airbnb’s listings based on ratings, reviews and reliability. It features two bedrooms with king-size beds and space for up to six overnight guests. The home also features a dreamy hot tub in view of the lavender fields. However, get your wallet ready, because a four-night stay in July for four guests costs just over $2,000. See pictures and book your stay at coopdelavender.com/pages/airbnb.

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