Time for Lavender Harvest

Monday past I had arranged for lavender delivery to our local ice cream shop. Alas, it was raining.  Raining in June?  Yes!  And preceded with a spectacular light show beginning in the early morning hours.  The lightening awoke me out of a sound sleep since it totally illuminated our bedroom, the thunder occurred so far away I could barely hear it.  Then the rain began. Dwight and Shasta slept through the event. Our rain gauge measured a mere 0.1 inch of rain.

Lavender flowers ready for harvest

This Friday past the sun was out and the air temperature warm.  Going out to check on the state of the lavender flowers I found on them covered with a variety of butterflies, native bees as well as honey bees. All these wingeds were joyfully nectaring on the plethora of open blosssoms.  A sure sign the lavender was ready for harvest to provide primo flavor for the lavender ice cream Screamin' Mimi's makes this time of the year.   

Hand cutting each lavender plant's fully opened flowers

I cut and filled three brown paper bags full of lavender flowers, sans wingeds, for immediate delivery to Screamin' Mimi's Ice Cream Shop to be made into lavender ice cream, second only in popularity to Mimi's Mud.  Soon you will see this familiar Summer sign in the shop's window.   

Tanis aka Auntie T and me at Screamim' Mimi's a few years ago

If you have not tasted their lavender ice cream, I invite you to do so. Perhaps for those of you that are skeptical, if you taste this smooth ice cream, lusciously flavored with freshly harvested lavender you maybe pleasantly surprised.

With the next delivery of lavender this picture of Shasta will be taken to Screamin' Mimi's to be entered into their monthly "Pet of the Month" contest.  

Shasta has come to trust, opening herself to her "forever home" here at MuRefuge

One month in her early life Rose won the monthly contest with this photo.

As you all are enjoying Summer and all that the season has to offer,