Lavender beat goes on, with upbeat views on herb’s future in Dungeness Valley

Published 12:01 am Tuesday, July 18, 2006

SEQUIM — The Dungeness Valley could be the Napa of the Northwest.

Or perhaps it is already.

The self-proclaimed lavender capital of North America on Monday drew herb lovers and growers from across the continent — Ontario, Canada, to Marin County, Calif. — to its two-day Lavender Conference at Sequim High School.

The proliferation of lavender farms all over the West makes Sequim growers stronger, said Lost Mountain Lavender owner Barbara Hanna.

“I see a parallel to the wine industry that started in Napa Valley [Calif.],” she said. Washington state has a wine boom of its own now, “and I don’t think Napa Valley is hurting.”

Hanna, Cathy Angel of Angel Farm and Sue Shirkey of Port Williams Lavender held a panel discussion at the conference Monday titled “A Year in the Life of a Lavender Farmer.”

Lavender fields sprouting elsewhere in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and beyond “caused us to grow together and work together and maintain a standard,” said Shirkey.

“Competition forces you to take a look at what you have . . . there’s no room for sloppiness.”

A lavender retreat

Hanna, Angel and Shirkey came to Sequim from stressful jobs in the Seattle area. They thought lavender farming would be a summer fling they could go back to when the weather warms — and they learned it’s a year-round relationship that requires a lot of dirty work.

They found love, not money, has a lot to do with it.

Shirkey said the people of the Dungeness Valley — plus her family members — make a farm happen.

She and her husband, Mike, keep the farm open seven days a week in summer. They’ve watched Port Williams’ popularity grow past their expectations, as people come to hear the story about how they thought they’d plant 1 acre of lavender — and that turned into 5, while they camped in a tent in the corner of the field.

“Boy, do we love sharing about our lavender,” Shirkey said. “That’s what we sell: the love of our farm.

“Of course, I’m exhausted” after the three-day Lavender Festival. But she renews herself with a morning ritual: a cup of coffee while standing in her lavender field.

THE CONFERENCE CONTINUES today at Sequim High School, 601 N. Sequim Ave., with registration available at the door for $145, including lunch and sessions from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For details visit www.lavenderfestival.com and use the conference link.