John Murrell harvests his lavender crop in front of the shop east of Brighton
Lavender hangs to dry in the attic of the Lavender Hills shop on County Rd. 2 east of Brighton.
Seven years ago John and Toni Murrell emigrated from France to Canada, settling near Stirling where they hoped to grow lavender on a large scale. Their initial planting of 1,800 perennial herbs was a first in the province.
The former Brits had some success – enough to know they needed to move a bit further south.
Conditions in Stirling weren’t ideal. It was difficult to protect their sometimes delicate crops, and they weren’t close enough to their markets. In their first year they lost 95% of their plants. Lavender grows so slowly it is easily overtaken by weeds. With drip irrigation black plastic cover, and winter mulch to provide greater plant protection for the hand planted seedlings, costs soared to $1,000 an acre, but their success rate climbed.
But some of the problems were insurmountable. Prevailing winds from the west often blew away their mulch, leaving plants exposed. And the winters were bitter for the delicate plants.
Pulling up stakes takes some time when you have to move 10,000 plants. It took six weeks in 2007 for the Murrells, family and friends to dig up the plants and re-plant them at their new home farm. The move was only 40 kilometres but their new farm is close to Lake Ontario and has a lake effect micro climate that makes it four degrees warmer than Stirling. The small climatic change may allow them to expand their roster of lavenders. Already they have noticed that some of the sensitive French lavenders are surviving.
Now located east of Brighton on County Road 2, the couple has reworked their plantings, built a shop to sell their lavender products, and developed a growing retail business.
The beds are mass planted, saving them the 15 miles of walking they did in Stirling when harvesting their rows of plants.
Lavender originates in the Mediterranean, so the number of possible varieties in Canada is limited. They grow eight of the 270 cultivars on their Brighton acreage.
Each year they grow thousands of plants. The essential oil produced by the mature plants is the base for all of their growing product line.
Producing lavender oil is a long and involved process.
Plants can take as long as three years before they can be harvested. They prefer sandy soils and direct sunlight. Simple mistakes, like cutting into the woody stems when harvesting, can kill a plant.
In mid-to-late summer, the lavender flowers are cut and bundled, then hung in the dark to dry naturally in the drying loft above the Little Lavender Shop. When dry, the florets are removed from the stems by hand rubbing, ready for dried flower sachets.
The oil is collected by steaming it from the plant and putting it through a chiller where the oil and water are separated. It’s cooled then stored for later use.
Weather permitting, a second flowering can be cut.
Fall is the time to move baby lavenders from the greenhouse to the winter safety of the farmhouse basement, the lavender fields are pruned and after the first frost, mulched with straw in readiness for the winter.
The lavender products created at Lavender Hills are made with perfume grade lavender essential oil and are all natural. The sachets, aromatherapy, insect repellants, bathing and skincare products have real flower scents. The linen water uses a Victorian recipe, dissolved in pure alcohol and combined with distilled water for ease of application when misting. The lavender soap is made with cold pressed virgin olive oil and 20% glycerin to make it non-greasy. John says some people use the soap as a room freshener.
Even the dog gets into the act. Hooch’s pet product line includes shampoo and perfumed bed linen spray
There is nothing artificial in the family’s lavender product mix, unlike many modern fragrances.
Small batch production ensures the customer gets fresh products all the time. The removal of man-made synthetics and a return to the way it used to be made, has proved beneficial for many customers with allergies, fragile X syndrome, sleep disorders, and insomnia.
Their growing list of esthetician and wellness center customers are choosing the lavender products because of their attention to detail and natural ingredients. Even migraine sufferers have claimed to have success after using their product.
John explains that the lavender contains 50% linalol alcohol, up to 35% ketones and a smaller percentage of esters. All have a role to play.
The alcohol kills bacteria, heals burns, wounds and sores.
Ketones relieve pain, rebuild skin tissues, reduce inflammation and have a sleep inducing effect.Esters ease swelling and soreness, prevent muscle spasms, fight fungal infections and scarring. They help regulate moods, preventing depression and hysteria.
The strong aroma comes from the aldehydes.
Their list of food products is growing. Lavender honey is quickly becoming a favourite. Chocolates, and a variety of jams including blueberry, strawberry and peach, and marmalade all contain a touch of lavender.
Each spring about 1,000 plants go on sale in four-inch pots started the year before.
Lavender Hills products can be purchased from their shop at 15653 County Road 2 from Wednesday to Saturday between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. or on Sundays from 2-5 p.m. They can also be purchased online at http://www.lavnderhills.biz/. For more information John and Toni can be reached at 613 475-9934.
Lavender hangs to dry in the attic of the Lavender Hills shop on County Rd. 2 east of Brighton.
Seven years ago John and Toni Murrell emigrated from France to Canada, settling near Stirling where they hoped to grow lavender on a large scale. Their initial planting of 1,800 perennial herbs was a first in the province.
The former Brits had some success – enough to know they needed to move a bit further south.
Conditions in Stirling weren’t ideal. It was difficult to protect their sometimes delicate crops, and they weren’t close enough to their markets. In their first year they lost 95% of their plants. Lavender grows so slowly it is easily overtaken by weeds. With drip irrigation black plastic cover, and winter mulch to provide greater plant protection for the hand planted seedlings, costs soared to $1,000 an acre, but their success rate climbed.
But some of the problems were insurmountable. Prevailing winds from the west often blew away their mulch, leaving plants exposed. And the winters were bitter for the delicate plants.
Pulling up stakes takes some time when you have to move 10,000 plants. It took six weeks in 2007 for the Murrells, family and friends to dig up the plants and re-plant them at their new home farm. The move was only 40 kilometres but their new farm is close to Lake Ontario and has a lake effect micro climate that makes it four degrees warmer than Stirling. The small climatic change may allow them to expand their roster of lavenders. Already they have noticed that some of the sensitive French lavenders are surviving.
Now located east of Brighton on County Road 2, the couple has reworked their plantings, built a shop to sell their lavender products, and developed a growing retail business.
The beds are mass planted, saving them the 15 miles of walking they did in Stirling when harvesting their rows of plants.
Lavender originates in the Mediterranean, so the number of possible varieties in Canada is limited. They grow eight of the 270 cultivars on their Brighton acreage.
Each year they grow thousands of plants. The essential oil produced by the mature plants is the base for all of their growing product line.
Producing lavender oil is a long and involved process.
Plants can take as long as three years before they can be harvested. They prefer sandy soils and direct sunlight. Simple mistakes, like cutting into the woody stems when harvesting, can kill a plant.
In mid-to-late summer, the lavender flowers are cut and bundled, then hung in the dark to dry naturally in the drying loft above the Little Lavender Shop. When dry, the florets are removed from the stems by hand rubbing, ready for dried flower sachets.
The oil is collected by steaming it from the plant and putting it through a chiller where the oil and water are separated. It’s cooled then stored for later use.
Weather permitting, a second flowering can be cut.
Fall is the time to move baby lavenders from the greenhouse to the winter safety of the farmhouse basement, the lavender fields are pruned and after the first frost, mulched with straw in readiness for the winter.
The lavender products created at Lavender Hills are made with perfume grade lavender essential oil and are all natural. The sachets, aromatherapy, insect repellants, bathing and skincare products have real flower scents. The linen water uses a Victorian recipe, dissolved in pure alcohol and combined with distilled water for ease of application when misting. The lavender soap is made with cold pressed virgin olive oil and 20% glycerin to make it non-greasy. John says some people use the soap as a room freshener.
Even the dog gets into the act. Hooch’s pet product line includes shampoo and perfumed bed linen spray
There is nothing artificial in the family’s lavender product mix, unlike many modern fragrances.
Small batch production ensures the customer gets fresh products all the time. The removal of man-made synthetics and a return to the way it used to be made, has proved beneficial for many customers with allergies, fragile X syndrome, sleep disorders, and insomnia.
Their growing list of esthetician and wellness center customers are choosing the lavender products because of their attention to detail and natural ingredients. Even migraine sufferers have claimed to have success after using their product.
John explains that the lavender contains 50% linalol alcohol, up to 35% ketones and a smaller percentage of esters. All have a role to play.
The alcohol kills bacteria, heals burns, wounds and sores.
Ketones relieve pain, rebuild skin tissues, reduce inflammation and have a sleep inducing effect.Esters ease swelling and soreness, prevent muscle spasms, fight fungal infections and scarring. They help regulate moods, preventing depression and hysteria.
The strong aroma comes from the aldehydes.
Their list of food products is growing. Lavender honey is quickly becoming a favourite. Chocolates, and a variety of jams including blueberry, strawberry and peach, and marmalade all contain a touch of lavender.
Each spring about 1,000 plants go on sale in four-inch pots started the year before.
Lavender Hills products can be purchased from their shop at 15653 County Road 2 from Wednesday to Saturday between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. or on Sundays from 2-5 p.m. They can also be purchased online at http://www.lavnderhills.biz/. For more information John and Toni can be reached at 613 475-9934.
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