RavenCroft Farm

Michale Lemmers, owner of RavenCroft as well as LNW’s current president and longtime board member, is also a practicing physician with a private practice in Silverton.  We’re not sure how he does everything he does and stays sane, but we are always thankful for his scientific mind and insights.  He has contributed several very informative articles to the LNW body of literature about lavender essential oil and its components, breaking down and distinguishing facts from fiction.  Here’s a little bit about him:

How long have you been growing lavender?

I planted my field in 2012 and had a moderate harvest in 2014, followed by my first big harvest in 2015.

What led you to be a lavender farmer?

I purchased the RavenCroft property in 2009 and decided to “grow something” in order to maintain a county tax deferral for farming. I had to spend a couple of years clearing out blackberry and broom, and during that time, came upon the lavender idea after I learned that deer were unlikely to bother it. I developed a relationship with OLA and Sarah Bader (before she closed her business) and these contacts helped me figure out how to prepare and plant the field. Sarah provided all of the initial plants.

How did you come up with the name of your farm?

“Ravens” were on my mind around the time of house and farm naming, not only because of isolated sightings, but because of the attributes and qualities attached to them in Alaskan tribal folklore (having been exposed to that on an Alaska cruise not so long ago). “Croft” is a traditional reference to a small contained farm, and seemed to fit the descriptive needs pretty well.

What do you do in addition to being a lavender farmer?

I am a full-time physician, maintaining a private practice based in Silverton. I specialize in urological surgical disorders. I am looking forward to the day I can do less doctoring and more farming.

What is your favorite lavender variety? Why?

Of the angustifolia varieties planted in the RavenCroft field, I have a particular fondness for ‘Croxton’s Wild’ and ‘Melissa’ — very different from one another, but each has a unique scent profile that I find captivating, particularly from fresh flowers. The oil from ‘Croxton’s’ is interesting, less so for ‘Melissa’.  ‘Croxton’s’ also has some culinary utility in dried bud form.

As for the intermedia varieties, ‘Super’ and ‘Gros Bleu’ have been my favorites, with their long slender and elegant spikes and pleasant lavandin fragrance. Recent awareness of ‘Anniversary Bouquet’ has captured my attention, and I plan to replant several declining lavandins with this cultivar. Other individual plants in my specimen garden have performed well, including L. ang. ‘Elizabeth’, and L. x chaytorae ‘Lisa Marie.’

What is your favorite use for lavender?

My heart is in distillation for essential oil. The chemist in me is fascinated by the remarkable variability among the oils and the molecular differences that create the unique scent characteristics of the individual varieties.

What’s your best Lavender growing tip?

Sun!!! (and don’t let them get too thirsty).

Who helps you with your lavender farming?

Covid put a damper on my public farm visitation and gift shop operations, and I have not been motivated to re-establish those offerings — so that has cut down on the need for assistance. I do have a long-time field-hand who continues to help out on his days off and weekends and who manages to recruit a few of his family and friends to help during harvest!

Do you have a favorite recipe using lavender?

We’ve come up with several RavenCroft recipes featuring lavender, and one of my favorites has been a cocktail we call “Maiden’s Blood”…there’s a long story having to do with summer music camp and the Schubert string quartet called “Death and the Maiden.” It’s definitely not an easy, throw-together cocktail, but it’s worth the effort.  A recent addition to the RavenCroft lavender cookbook is a lavender tapioca custard, the recipe for which is on the LNW website.

Anything else you would like to share?

First, I continue to have a lot of critical concern about lavender farmers putting out unsubstantiated claims about various properties or attributes of lavender products, particularly the essential oil.

Secondly, I’m glad that I don’t have to rely on lavender to make a living or pay my bills. A whole lot of time, effort, and money goes into producing good-quality lavender products. Sadly, the lavender-buying clientele is just not very sophisticated and readily settles for mediocrity. It would be nice to see some developing appreciation for special higher-quality lavender products…that would help us small-scale lavender farmers significantly.