2007 Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Yamhill, Oregon
15 April 07

Oregon Lavender Festival
Saturday & Sunday, July 7 & 8, 2007, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Artisan Fair on Second & Maple in Yamhill
Self-guided farm tours start from the Artisan Fair or any participating farm
Contact is Marilyn Kosel, 503-662-4488,
E-mail : Info@OregonLavenderFestival.org

Experience all things lavender at the Oregon Lavender Festival

Mark your calendar and plan a visit this summer to beautiful northwest Oregon for the newly expanded Oregon Lavender Festival, a merger of the Yamhill Valley Lavender Festival and the Portland Lavender Festival. On July 7 & 8, 2007, the area will celebrate all things lavender, with lavender farms opening their fields to the public and the town of Yamhill hosting an Artisan Fair in the historic downtown area. The fair will feature fine arts, crafts, and local lavender products for sale, lavender oil distillation demonstrations, music, an art show and sale, craft classes, food, and much more.

In France, visitors can travel the lavender route of Provence as it winds its way from village to village through countryside awash in a sea of purple. Now Oregon has its own lavender route with more than a dozen beautiful lavender farms scattered along the western foothills leading to the Coast range. Participating farms include Australasian College of Health Sciences, Bishop House Lavender Farm, Blue Heron Herbary, Helvetia Lavender Farm, Jackson School Lavender, Latitudes of Lavender, Lavender at Stonegate, Mountainside Lavender, Red Ridge Farms, The Lavender Thyme Herb Farm, Wayward Winds Lavender Farm, Wayward Winds Mercantile, Wild Rain Farm, Willakenzie Lavender, Woodland Lavender and Yesteryear Lavender.

Tour several of the lavender farms to enjoy the beauty and scents of lavender in the fields and experience the unique vision of each farmer. Each farm has different activities arranged for the festival, ranging from lavender bouquet cutting to mini-festivals with music, food, and vendors, so be sure to visit www.OregonLavenderFestival.org to plan your day. Some farms are well established, while others are young fields, so visitors will be able to see and learn about the lavender farming industry in different stages of development. En route to visit each farm, you will drive through pastoral countryside; - a splash of purple on the landscape announces that you have arrived at the next farm. Entry to each farm is free.

The lavender growers of northwest Oregon invite you to come out to enjoy all the uses that lavender has to offer. In weeks prior to the festival, plein air artists will capture colorful local fields on canvas and display their art during the festival at a juried art show and sale in downtown Yamhill. You can watch as lavender is distilled to produce the most beneficial essential oil of all and learn about the properties, benefits, and uses of lavender oil, such as natural cures for insomnia and moth repellants. Local growers can answer all your questions about the propagation, cultivation, maintenance, harvesting, and drying of lavender. At the Artisan Fair, and at many of the lavender farms, you can make your own lavender themed crafts, such as wands, wreaths, crowns, sachets, soaps, eye pillows, and beaded jewelry. A diverse range of lavender products will also be for sale, many created by local craftsmen.

A significant portion of the proceeds from this year’s festival will be donated to the Yamhill Community Resource Center, advocating support for local community programs aimed at the arts and people of all ages. This cooperative event brings local growers and community volunteers together to educate the public about the delightful and beneficial uses of lavender.

For more information, visit www.OregonLavenderFestival.org, or call 503-662-4488.