Comments on: Lavender Festival in Blanco, Texas http://blog.fbmg.com/2009/06/22/lavender-festival-in-blanco-texas/ One method of sharing horticultural information Wed, 08 Feb 2012 03:33:39 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.1 By: txmg http://blog.fbmg.com/2009/06/22/lavender-festival-in-blanco-texas/#comment-30 txmg Wed, 05 Aug 2009 02:06:56 +0000 http://blog.fbmg.com/2009/06/22/lavender-festival-in-blanco-texas/#comment-30 One tip the owner of Lavender Wind Farm gave to my daughter when she bought her lavender plants was to use lots of extra perlite to aerate and improve the drainage of soilless mixes in her containers. Of course the climate of the Northwest makes it almost foolproof to grow this Mediterranean plant in their landscapes. I hear that lavender doesn't care for enriched soil either. Hopefully, your two remaining plants will flourish! And I hope you get back to Whidbey soon to experience it this time from a gardener's perspective. One tip the owner of Lavender Wind Farm gave to my daughter when she bought her lavender plants was to use lots of extra perlite to aerate and improve the drainage of soilless mixes in her containers. Of course the climate of the Northwest makes it almost foolproof to grow this Mediterranean plant in their landscapes. I hear that lavender doesn’t care for enriched soil either.

Hopefully, your two remaining plants will flourish! And I hope you get back to Whidbey soon to experience it this time from a gardener’s perspective.

]]> By: Robert http://blog.fbmg.com/2009/06/22/lavender-festival-in-blanco-texas/#comment-29 Robert Tue, 04 Aug 2009 21:40:51 +0000 http://blog.fbmg.com/2009/06/22/lavender-festival-in-blanco-texas/#comment-29 <p>Wow, I loved Whidbey Island when I visited there in 1992! That was during my Navy years and gardening wasn't too much on my radar then. I did love the view and the food was terrific.</p> <p>You have just given me a very good reason to head back to Washington and check Whidbey Island out.</p> <p>By the way, one of my lavender plants has survived the extreme heat here in Fort Bend so far. Another is alive and kicking in my wife's office. The other four have turned grey, dry, and don't look like survivors. :(</p> Wow, I loved Whidbey Island when I visited there in 1992! That was during my Navy years and gardening wasn’t too much on my radar then. I did love the view and the food was terrific.

You have just given me a very good reason to head back to Washington and check Whidbey Island out.

By the way, one of my lavender plants has survived the extreme heat here in Fort Bend so far. Another is alive and kicking in my wife’s office. The other four have turned grey, dry, and don’t look like survivors. :(

]]> By: txmg http://blog.fbmg.com/2009/06/22/lavender-festival-in-blanco-texas/#comment-28 txmg Tue, 04 Aug 2009 21:18:22 +0000 http://blog.fbmg.com/2009/06/22/lavender-festival-in-blanco-texas/#comment-28 Love those road trips! In July, I had the pleasure of visiting Lavender Wind Farm on Whidbey Island, WA, a short road and ferry trip from Seattle. What an extensive area of blooming lavender fields and a fabulous view of the Olympic Mountains across the water! One might think it could be too wet to grow lavender there, but Whidbey Island is in the Olympic Rain Shadow, receiving less than 20 inches of rain a year and sustaining lots of wind and sunshine. After walking the fields, sampling lavender chocolate chip scones, and knowing the packing limitations for the return flight, not to mention my previous lack of success growing lavender in FB County, no lavender plants were purchased. But I did succumb to buying a few 3 inch chocolate plants from the Chocolate Flower Farm in Langley on the southern end of the island. Another great place to visit - beautiful gardens and lots of chocolate-related plants for sale. Meerkerk Gardens (especially known for its spring-blooming rhodies) is also on Whidbey, but we didn't get there before the 4 pm closing. Yes, 4 pm. Great gardens, good food, numerous restful places to enjoy the spectacular scenery - Whidbey Island definitely earns a gardener's thumbs up! Love those road trips! In July, I had the pleasure of visiting Lavender Wind Farm on Whidbey Island, WA, a short road and ferry trip from Seattle. What an extensive area of blooming lavender fields and a fabulous view of the Olympic Mountains across the water! One might think it could be too wet to grow lavender there, but Whidbey Island is in the Olympic Rain Shadow, receiving less than 20 inches of rain a year and sustaining lots of wind and sunshine. After walking the fields, sampling lavender chocolate chip scones, and knowing the packing limitations for the return flight, not to mention my previous lack of success growing lavender in FB County, no lavender plants were purchased. But I did succumb to buying a few 3 inch chocolate plants from the Chocolate Flower Farm in Langley on the southern end of the island. Another great place to visit - beautiful gardens and lots of chocolate-related plants for sale. Meerkerk Gardens (especially known for its spring-blooming rhodies) is also on Whidbey, but we didn’t get there before the 4 pm closing. Yes, 4 pm. Great gardens, good food, numerous restful places to enjoy the spectacular scenery - Whidbey Island definitely earns a gardener’s thumbs up!

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