By Sylvia Arad | Submitted On Might 07, 2010


To undertaking to Provence in July is always to be missing inside of a purple colored sea. Oceans of lavender just about everywhere - in patches, in waves, in best rows, industry after area - the hillsides in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence are daubed in blue, mauve, gray and violet by good swathes of lavender in bloom. This is harvest time in Provence's lavender regions - the tractors are rolling, the distilleries steaming and lavender festivals are in complete swing.

Lavender, the emblem of Provence, is rising in this article forever. Its formal cultivation nonetheless is quite new, and it has supplied increase to lavandin; a hybrid Variation used more for industrial functions.

"Wonderful" or genuine lavender is grown for its crucial oils. To qualify for that highly coveted AOC (Appellation of Controlled Origin) - France's maximum stamp of acceptance - the lavender must satisfy incredibly demanding conditions, its output restricted to 284 villages and cultivated in regions above 800 m within the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, the Drome and Vaucluse. Utilized for perfumes, in aromatherapy and medicinally, it need to also meet up with olfactory assessments, and Specific harvesting and distillation procedures.

Beneath the blazing Sunshine, this sensitive plant is harvested by hand by family members steeped in its traditions, who definitely have cultivated it for generations. It can be then dried for times in advance of remaining distilled. The distillation system is made of passing steam in the dried bouquets, which happen to be collected in bunches inside of a continue to Prestige Lavender Fields to extract their critical oils. Many procedures are made use of depending on the lavender's use. To produce one Liter of critical oil, 287 lb. of great lavender is made use of; for perfumes, the procedure is more advanced taking on 2200 lbs. of lavender to produce three gallons of absolute pure oil.

Provence Lavender Nation Provides Fantastic Hiking Vacations and Biking Routes

Lavender conjures up amazing vistas of blue fields, punctuated by pink poppies, a patchwork of gold grain and occasional strands of oak and pine which extend in the hallucinatory blue horizon. This area is often a biking and climbing paradise - biking routes abound for site visitors who desire to enterprise off- the-beaten-path over the "Route de Lavande" and mountaineering holidays about the "Grande Randonne" trails are an adventurer's aspiration. The imposing Luberon Mountains and Vaucluse plain serve as the backdrop to the magnificent panoramas of historic villages perched on hillsides; Along with the scents of rosemary, thyme, savory rather than minimum, lavender.

The "Route de Lavande" qualified prospects site visitors by means of swathes of fragrant fields, gardens, distilleries, museums and villages. The many festivals, the largest hosted by Sault, show lavender floats and shows and offer you not just bouquets and sachets, but every kind of lavender-associated products - creamy honey, scented candles and perhaps aprons. Dining places offer you lavender impressed menus and spas provide thermal baths and massages with lavender oil.