Love lavender? Make a bee-line to Maple Rock

Advice on how to harvest lavender and not get stung

By Debbie Arrington

If you love the scent of lavender, here's an opportunity to harvest as much as you can carry.
Maple Rock Gardens will host its second annual Lavender Days on Saturday, June 9. From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., visitors can pick their own lavender from two massive fields. Admission is $10.

Above, the Grosso lavender field at Maple Rock Gardens.
Top, bees love lavender. (Photos: Debbie Arrington)

"It's like a little bit of Provence," said Scott Paris,  owner of Maple Rock Gardens and High Hand Nursery. "You can pick all you want. It's pretty simple. Come and get it." 
Paris waits to announce the exact date for Lavender Days until the fields are ready for harvest. 
"You can't just put a date to it," he said, "because it's up to Mother Nature."

At the inaugural event in June 2017, the fields were open for two Saturdays, attracting more than 800 visitors. 
"It's only going to be one day this year," Paris said, "unless we have a lot of lavender left over."
In addition to harvesting lavender, attendees can walk through parts of Maple Rock's famous gardens, considered among the finest in Northern California. 
"Bring your lunch, make it a picnic," Paris said.

About 2,000 lavender plants fill the slopes in front of Paris' home at Maple Rock.
"I originally planted lavender because I like looking at it," he said. 
Closest to the parking area is darker blue Hidcote, an English variety. Grosso, a large French hybrid, fills the main field.
Attendees should bring shears or pruners, gloves and something in which to to carry their harvest. Straight-sided shopping bags work well. Water and sun screen are essential to bring, too.

The major obstacle to collecting lavender? Bees. They've very busy doing their own harvest.
"I can tell you what you don't do around bees," Paris said. "Don't wear bright colors. Don't wear perfume. Don't put lavender up to your face; the bee will follow it. Don't put bunches on the ground, then pick them up -- you'll get stung. The bees will be in the flowers."

Maple Rock Gardens is at 100 Clark Tunnel Road, Newcastle. From Sacramento, take Interstate 80 east to Sierra College Boulevard. Turn left on Sierra College and travel 7 miles. Turn right on Highway 193, then right on Clark Tunnel.
Tickets are available at www.highhand.com.
Details: https://www.highhandnursery.com/events/category/feature/