In full bloom

Jenelle Hebert (centre) with son Emerson (L) and daughter Madelyn (R) pick a bouquet of lavender flowers on Saturday.

Seventh annual Lavender Festival draws large crowds

Seven years ago Rolande Leblanc and Derek Ryles of Prince Edward County Lavender decided to hold a small festival to share the beauty of their lavender farm on Closson Road, just north of Wellington. They were pleasantly surprised when more than 700 people showed up. Since then, the festival has continued to grow, with over 6,000 visitors last year, and they expected to surpass that number this year. “We’ve increased the level of entertainment, increased the number of things to do, and it’s been well received each time,” says Leblanc. “I think we are on the right track and that is why we are getting more and more people every year. We’ve got a lot of feedback saying it was well organized and everybody is happy because there’s beauty all around us and people really enjoy that part.”

The farm grows over three acres of lavender, which Ryles says is about 19,000 plants. “We’re a little bit late in blooming because of the cool weather we had earlier, and the cold snap in early January,” says Ryles. “But we are pleased with the way things are going. It’s just at the beginning of the peak for the festival, so that’s the best we could possibly hope for.” The festival is weather dependent, and this past weekend was almost perfect in that regard. Leblanc and Ryles were forecasting an attendance of over 7,000 during the weekend, including 10 busloads of visitors each day.

The sheer volume of visitors poses a number of challenges, among them parking spaces and washroom availability. Ryles and Leblanc have addressed these two by designating an entire meadow for parking and by going to a Trenton supplier for the portable toilets. The biggest challenge, though, is to find enough volunteers to make the event run smoothly. “We have a solid core, and we are really appreciative of them coming back every year,” says Leblanc. “Every year, the festival has increased in size and that means we have a need for more people.” Nearly 50 volunteers are required to handle parking duties, restocking items, staffing the various booths and demonstrations, and tending the grounds.

Events at this year’s festival included a petting zoo, face-painting, a castle maze and pony rides for the kids. There were several County food vendors and a range of musical entertainment on both days. Lavender lemonade and lavender gelato were popular items over the sunny weekend. There were several demonstrations on how lavender products are made, and for a small fee, visitors could pick their own mini-bouquet of lavender flowers. Throughout the weekend, visitors contentedly wandered through the lavender fields, pausing to take photographs or simply inhaling the gentle fragrance that suffused the air.

Rows of lavender plants are reflected in Angela Zhang’s sunglasses.