Category: Businesses

Inhale…enjoy

Graysmarsh Farm is another lavender grower in Sequim, though they also have seasonal berries. The lavender is a part of their “U pick” operations; visitors can pick lavender bouquets as well as summer strawberries, raspberries, and other berries.

As with our other farms, the lavender attracts photographers.

Graysmarsh fields are beautiful because, well, lavender. Though some other farms include features to enhance photo-taking or encourage visitors to linger, this location is a farm that focuses on its commodities. If you love lavender, that’s plenty.

Provence closer to home

Jardin du Soleil is another of Sequim’s local lavender farms that I never tire of visiting in summer.

I visited on a weekday — weekends may be busier — but in a time of social distancing our lavender farms offer a soothing and pleasant respite.

No one is likely headed to Provence anytime soon in these days of pandemic. But Sequim’s dozen plus lavender farms are a none too shabby consolation.

Lavender season

Sequim is blessed with good growing conditions for lavender and July is the peak season for enjoying it. We have over a dozen farms of varying sizes, each with its own personality and offerings. Purple Haze, which I’m showing you today, is one of the oldest and one I always enjoy visiting.

Sequim’s annual Lavender Festival which includes music, craft sales, and lavender cultivation and distilling demonstrations at many farms, has been cancelled this year due to the pandemic.

The fields at Purple Haze are designed with an artist’s eye. They cover seven hillside acres and the property includes a gift shop and a vacation rental.

Many types of lavender are grown, including early and late varieties, and colors range from almost white to deep, rich purples. The green stripes in this shot are bushes that have already been harvested. The blossoms are available for visitors to pick. Likely, these blossoms went into some of many lavender scented products offered by Purple Haze.

Purple Haze offers ice cream and lavender-infused beverages during summer months. For us no visit would be complete without their lavender lemon custard ice cream (which has very subtle lavender undertones). Richly decadent and delicious.

Cook’s night off

If there’s anything I’ve been doing a lot during home quarantine it’s cooking. Some days I’m more enthusiastic than others. But sometimes I miss things, often ethnic cooking, that I know I can’t cook as well as well as someone with skills and seasonings I don’t have.

The other day we got takeout from Sergio’s, a local Mexican restaurant. A chili rellano and enchilada verde with all the trimmings, including homemade chips and salsa. Enough food for two heavenly meals for this cook.

Politicized

Like many other things in the U.S. these days, wearing a mask for some has somehow become political expression. It’s ironic. We are required to wear seatbelts in our cars, helmets on motorcycles. Yet some object to a simple item that helps prevent the spread of a deadly virus.

Heaven help us. Science has become not a search for truth but a matter of opinion.