Lookout Lavender Farm Announces Dates For Upcoming U–Pick Event

By REBECCA HAZEN
News Editor

Lookout Lavender Farm’s annual u-pick dates are on going, from today, Wednesday, June 16, through Saturday, June 19, and again next week from Tuesday, June 22, through Saturday, June 26.

Lookout Lavender Farm is owned by Alice and Bill Marrin, and is located at 1039 North Moore Road, in Rising Fawn.

The farm is open for u-pick from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., except for Thursdays, which feature evening hours, from 4-8 p.m.

There is a $5 per adult fee to enter the field, and children under 12 are free. A bundle of lavender is $7 and is measured by fitting in the thumbhole of a pair of scissors. There is ample parking, so there is no time limit in the field.

“Bring your friends, bring your family. It’s a good girlfriend’s trip, it’s a good date night,” Alice Marrin said.

Customers are welcome to take photos for personal use, and the field is available after hours for professional photography.

When the lavender bundles are brought home, they should be stored upside down in a climate-controlled room.

“When they dry you can put it in a bouquet or you can use the buds for sachet bags,” Marrin said.

Alice and Bill Marrin bought the property in 2016, and planted the lavender in 2017. This is the u-pick event’s fourth year.

“It was a distressed property. It was covered in logs, construction debris and gas tanks. It was a needy property, but it had been well loved at some point,” Marrin said.

The Marrins decided to plant lavender because it is low maintenance. Lavender is a perennial bush and has to be trimmed to be kept healthy. The plant is dormant through the winter.

“Deer don’t eat it. You don’t need to fence it, it is drought tolerant. It checked a lot of boxes,” Marrin explained.

There are two categories of lavender at Lookout Lavender Farm, culinary and fragrant. The u-pick is for the fragrant lavender only, but the culinary lavender can be bought at the Lav Shack, their on-site farm store.

The Lav Shack will be open during the u-pick times. A new item this year will be honey from Shinbone Valley Bee Company of Menlo. Also for sale are culinary cookbooks and culinary salt and pepper. There are eye pillows, sachet bags and drawer fresheners. There are items made from essential oils such as bath products, lotions and candles. Customers can also buy their own lavender plants.

“A little bit of everything” Marrin said.

The Lav Shack is open on Saturdays in the summer from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Lookout Lavender Farm is a member of the U.S. Lavender Growers Association. They commit to using only 100 percent essential oil, never synthetic fragrances, and their own farm grown lavender.

“We love doing this and we have met some of the nicest, most interesting people. Everyone enjoys it and it is a good platform for establishing relationships,” Marrin said. “When we bought this we wanted to share. We feel like this is a good way to do that.”

For more information visit lookoutlavender.com. Lookout Lavender Farm can also be found on Facebook and Instagram.