Dr. Lavender teaches self-esteem in the garden
Paul Jendrucko, master gardener and lover of lavender, stands amid some of his patients as Dr. Lavender at Sunshine Herb and Lavender Farm east of Blyn. "I'm a little bit silly," he admits. -- Photo by Chris Tucker/Peninsula Daily News
By Diane Urbani de la Paz, Peninsula Daily News
Print This |
Email This
Recent Headlines
Nominate volunteers for Clallam County Community Service Award -- 1/21/12 -09:01 PM
Nominate your community hero for Jefferson County Heart of Service award -- 1/18/12 -09:19 AM
House OKs bill to give Quileute higher ground, public permanent access to Rialto, other beaches -- 2/6/12 -05:47 PM
Trying to get a sneak peek at the dams being removed? Fine! Literally! -- 2/6/12 -05:47 PM
But Paul Jendrucko, master gardener and lover of lavender, has anointed himself doctor to the people who suffer from black thumb — or just busyness.
While he holds no doctorate diploma, he has 10 years of experience and research in growing the soothing herb.
In quick, dry dispensations at farmers markets and the Sequim Lavender Festival Street Fair on Fir Street, which will be from July 18 to July 20 during the Srequim Lavender Festival, Jendrucko helps would-be growers look toward a purple horizon.
To start down the garden path, some of us need a little nudge, so Dr. Lavender provides three of them.
Just remember these prescriptions, he says: "Sun worshipper. Halloween haircut. No wet feet."
Laws of lavender
Lavender loves light, and it should have five hours of it during the day, Jendrucko said.
"Morning sun is better than afternoon sun. And it won't thrive unless you give it full sun."
Pruning is key to the traditional lavender shape.
"If you want that look of porcupines sleeping in the field, you've got to prune in late fall. Leave 2 or 3 inches of green growth; don't cut it down to the base," as you would with roses.
"Shape it into that ball, and take away any twigs around the base that could harbor moisture and fungus."
Lavender left to grow unfettered gets spindly, rangy or both.
To ensure that your herbs' feet stay dry — essential for longevity — plant them in freely draining soil.
If they're stuck in sticky, wet stuff, they may muddle along for 12 or 18 months, "but after a few years, they will say, 'Mom, Dad, you did it wrong.'"
Lavender flourishes with sun, good soil and a haircut once a year, but it's nowhere near as needy as some other pretty plants, Jendrucko said.
Ideal climate
Sequim and the Dungeness Valley constitute an ideal microclimate for lavender — hence the 30 farms that belong to the Sequim Lavender Growers Association.
The doctor and his wife, Mary Lou Jendrucko, are in their 10th year of running a lavender farm.
Their Sequim Lavender Co. markets the Dog Dot Calm, a patented lavender bandanna designed to "make your pet look good, feel good and smell good," according to the farm's Web site, www.DogDotCalm.com.
The Jendruckos also bring other lavender products — and dispense advice — at the Port Townsend Farmers Market on Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Lawrence and Taylor streets, and at the Chimacum Farmers Market from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays at the Chimacum Grange, 9572 Rhody Drive.
"I got involved a few years ago in selling the live plants," Jendrucko said.
"Lavender is a good plant for people who are busy . . . It's reasonable to buy, at $5 to $8, and it lasts 10 years.
"All year round, it's going to give you something: shape, smell, green. Even without flowers, it's going to give you fragrance."
Lavender has also given Jendrucko what he calls "chapter two" of life.
Three years ago, he retired after 31 years with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to become a full-time farmer.
As Dr. Lavender, "I'm a little bit silly. People are attracted to that," he said.
"Most homeowners are relieved to learn that, even with less than a green thumb, they can manage their garden just fine.
"High self-esteem in the garden is very important. Without it we just have weeds."
THE 12TH ANNUAL Sequim Lavender Festival on July 18 to July 20 will offer both a street fair and tours and activities at the area's lavender farms.
More than 150 vendors are expected at the Sequim Lavender Festival Street Fair in downtown Sequim, where visitors will find music, Northwest food, and North Olympic Peninsula wine tasting, along with lavender and lavender products produced by members of the Sequim Lavender Growers Association.
Workshops, demonstrations, you-pick lavender fields, and food spiced with the quintessential Sequim crop will be among the pleasures at the eight farms on special lavender tours — Jardin du Soleil, Purple Haze Lavender Farm, Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm, Angel Farm, Olympic Lavender, Sunshine Herb & Lavender Farm, Lost Mountain Lavender and Port Williams Lavender Farm.
Thirty farms belong to the Sequim Lavender Growers Association.
For more information about the festival, see www. www.lavenderfestival.com, phone 360-681-3035 or toll-free at 877-681-3035 , or e-mail info@lavenderfestival.com.
________
Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-681-2391 or diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
Last modified: July 06. 2008 9:00PM