Lavender Fields Forever!

Have you ever seen the fields of Provence in a haze of purple?

I never have, and wonder if I will ever get to see that sight in my lifetime.

But last weekend, I had the opportunity to visit Fort Hill Farms in Thompson, where I gazed upon 500 lavender plants in full bloom.

I will never forget the moment, which I shared with my own mother, making it extra special, of course. The aroma was almost spiritual, the fragrance sweet and spicy, somehow providing a sense of calm and clarity amidst the stifling humidity.

Bees staggered in the hot air, happily drunk on nectar.

I learned much about raising lavender plants - including the fact they do not like watering! The three keys to growing this plant truly means creating a micro-climate in your garden: stony soil (or no soil) lots of calcium provided by shells, and protective enclosures. At Fort Hill Farm, owner Kristin Orr has planted her lavender labyrinths under a stone wall that was a foundation, and inside another old foundation. Not only does the stone heat up the fragrant oils, it offers protection from the bitter winds and cold that New England dishes out.

The lavender at Fort Hill is all-organic, meaning it can be purchased for culinary uses. This Wednesday they will be opening their creamery, offering not only fresh ice-cream, but lavender jelly as well for topping - plus lavender cookies!

Visiting Fort Hill Farms is more than a tourist destination, it is a true gardener's delight, as it also contains more than 70 garden beds that myriad butterflies flit about in. Orr planted the beds to provide perennial plants right out of the ground to customers when her husband, Peter, wanted to start a nursery.

The above plants are photos taken in the "Quintessential Gardens." I'll add the lavender photo soon.

Orr, who is an energetic, outgoing, funny woman passionate about farming, could not keep the plants in a pot. It seemed to go against her spirit.

It is wonderful to see the gardens in full bloom in the beds. Not only do you see the plants you covet, but you get ideas, too.

Mine was how wonderful the white scabiosa would look weaving in and out of other plants. Both airy and white, it would provide a nice resting spot for the eye and provide expansive bursts of white to connect the other plants to each other, as well as offer bright, reflective bursts that only white can.

Gardeners can deploy white much like a painter does on the canvas. Trust me, gardening is as close to ANY artwork I'll ever be able to create.

In the fall, the farm segues into selling pumpkins, and a six-acre corn maze, always in an agricultural theme, keeps families busy and entertained while in the country! Imagine video games and game boys pushed to the sidelines, if only for a few hours!

I was fascinated to hear that Kristin Orr does not water her garden, which contains plants I consider not very xeric - such as phlox.

I admired her greatly for her work on the foundation wall that is twelve feet tall. To ward off poison ivy, she planted succulents, making a "living wall" that now possesses its own character, softened with plants that trail and offer color.

The farm will be open until Nov. 8, sun-up to sundown, but the lavender will be in bloom only until the end of July. For more information, www.forthillfarms.com

Take a trip to Thompson for a lavender excursion - while I still want to visit Provence, and the great museums of Europe, I am equally thrilled to see the labor of love one woman created "out in the middle of nowhere."