Lavender farm a feast for the senses as it ends its first season
When you arrive at the Four Girls Lavender farm, the fields of purple announce themselves first by their fragrance.
"The scent is is really attractive and it'll last for a while." said owner Alain Côté in an interview with CBC at the Colpitts Settlement farm in southeastern New Brunswick.
Côté and his family opened the Salisbury-area farm to the public this summer, after planting 220 lavender plants last year in preparation.
He and his wife Krista work as teachers in the community and have time to work on the farm during the summer months.
"It was lonely here last summer," said Côté, laughing.
But that isn't the case this year. All that preparation has paid off, and the original goal of selling a few flowers and a little lavender oil has turned into much more, especially once social media got a whiff of the farm.
"Social media really helped a lot, because as soon as you posted photos of the rows when they were in full bloom — it was really pretty," said Côté.
On an average weekend, the farm has attracted as many as 500 people, largely from the Moncton–Riverview–Dieppe area.
The picked lavender can be dried to preserve the oil in the leaves and buds. Côté said he has even heard from customers who have incorporated the lavender into cooking recipes.
"We were at the Dieppe market the other day...we gave some lavender to Tony's Boulangerie and he made truffles from the bud."
The farm is a family effort and named after Côté's four daughters — Genevieve, Veronique, Madeleine and Gabrielle — who also help on the farm.
Genevieve, 17, is the eldest daughter and has been working there as a summer job.
Her work consists of separating the stems from the leaves, as customers have different preferences.
"My parents prefer the darker kind [of lavender] because it's more smelly, but I can't really tell since I'm nose blind to the stuff ... I have been in it...I've planted it," she said.
The farm is now closed for the year, but the family plans to re-open to the public next July.
