In Sequim, Washington, a shared dream of sweet-smelling purple fields of lavender has changed a town’s character and landscape. In nine short years, Sequim has gone from relative obscurity to national renown as “The Lavender Capital of North America.”

“Lavender now grows on land once occupied by thousands of dairy cows,” says local Lavender Festival historian, journalist, and crafter Betty Oppenheimer. “During the first half of the 20th century, hundreds of dairy farms thrived in the valley, but today, only a handful of full-scale farms remain. Sequim lost 75 percent of its agricultural base in five decades. Retired farmers have seen the value of their land rise exponentially if they sell it for residential development rather than for farming.” This scenario is familiar to many communities across the west, as is the result: farmland is being subdivided and developed.

But Sequim is also unique. The Sequim Dungeness Valley lies in a “rainshadow” created by the high peaks of the Olympic Mountains, thus the clouds part more frequently here in the winter than elsewhere in western Washington, attracting folks looking for a bit more space and a bit more sun. “Over the past 30 years, Sequim has become a haven for retirees,” says Betty. “Golf courses and new homes have replaced much of the farmland, and many who own acreage no longer farm it.”

Betty continues, “As the town grew, its beauty was often been obscured behind shopping centers and recreational vehicle parks. The idea of growing flowers began as a vision of rediscovering the beauty of the remaining land, in the hopes of creating a community identity which would ultimately preserve it.” Residents of Sequim, many of them newcomers, joined together to reinvent and revitalize the area’s agricultural heritage.

As farmers subdivided and sold their land, gardeners and people looking for a quieter lifestyle moved to the area. Betty laughs, “Mowing five acres of grass and weeds soon lost its romantic flavor, and many of these new landowners were seeking a better way to utilize the land.” The idea of growing lavender in the Sequim Dungeness Valley was first discussed in 1995 by an informal group of farmers, gardeners and community leaders. Betty explains, “Their objective was twofold: to preserve Sequim’s agricultural land and to create a tourist destination where people would come to learn about farming, and contribute to the health of the area. The group chose lavender because it thrives in sun and dry soil, and Sequim, because of its unique prairie microclimate, offers both.”

The earliest lavender fields were planted in 1995. By 1997 when the first Lavender Festival was held, there were seven lavender farms; today there are close to forty. A Saturday, open air market was launched in 1996 to bring together local craft, produce and, of course, lavender sellers. “The first Celebrate Lavender Festival featured farm tours, a downtown market and an evening dance,” recalls Betty. “The festival has grown into a long weekend of tours, a downtown craft fair with over 100 booths, activities, and entertainment.” In 2003 the festival attracted 28,000 visitors and brought an estimated $2.5 million into town in one weekend. Because different varieties of the plant bloom throughout July and August, the "lavender season" in Sequim lasts all summer, and many farms stay open well before and after the festival.

“People now associate lavender with the small town of Sequim, just as everyone had hoped,” says Betty. The economic impact of Sequim’s new focus has been far reaching. “Each farm looked for a marketing niche,” Betty explains, “from you-pick flowers on the farm, to supplying the wholesale flower market, to making products. And since many farmers were simply too busy to make their own products, and many crafters had no interest in farming, cottage businesses formed to fill a need. There are currently several dozen businesses, separate from the lavender farms, who make at least part of their living making soap, baked goods, candles, sewn products, plant starts, aromatherapy, and cosmetics. Other kinds of support businesses grew with the lavender industry too. Marketing firms, printers and web site designers all found new customers in lavender farms.”

The community has been revitalized by its new identity “We’ve learned to be open to new ideas, to welcome strangers and to believe in our ability to create new things,” says Betty. “We’ve learned that it takes all kinds of people with all kinds of skills to change a community identity.”

Of course there have been some challenges along the way. “The tensions between farmers who aggressively pursued markets and farmers who wanted a more cooperative spirit were very real,” explains Betty. “But as people explored market options and personal preferences, each farm found its niche.” Other issues – like product standards, pricing, whether or not to grow organically – have arisen as the lavender industry has grown. Betty notes that each year, some folks come to Sequim thinking they can invest in land, plant lavender, and it will sell itself. “Not so,” she says.

And while the Sequim Dungeness Valley is now dotted with aromatic fields of purple, farmland is still threatened. “Agritourism is a double-edged sword,” explains Betty. Lavender brings in lodging and restaurant customers, but it also crowds the town, and gives Sequim high visibility as a great place to live, resulting in more people deciding to move here, and possibly build on what was once farmland. Saving farmland in the face of such a beautiful retirement area is a slow process – one in which each successive wave of newcomers has to be educated anew.”

“As a group, it is not the lavender farmers who are saving farmland,” Betty acknowledges. That work remains the purview of land trusts and other local activists. “But we have learned that a town can band together to reinvent itself,” she says, “even after changes in economy and lifestyle seem to have dealt us a tough blow with the loss of fishing, farming and logging.”

Betty concludes, The hard work of the lavender pioneers has contributed to the reaffirmation of Sequim’s identity as a farming community. Now the community understands the real possibility of economic viability, without depletion of the natural beauty that drew us here. It took visionary leaders, risk-taking entrepreneurs and dedicated believers willing to volunteer their time to make the dreams real, but we did it!”

Contact
Sequim Lavender Festival
105 1/2 E First St.
Port Angeles, WA 98362
Tel: 360-681-3035 or 877-681-3035
Fax: 360-452-4695
www.lavenderfestival.com

Sequim Lavender Festival
Betty Oppenheimer
10 Salal Way
Sequim, WA 98382
Tel: 360-683-3441
ravensbop@olympus.net
Betty Oppenheimer is the author of “Growing Lavender and Community on the Sequim Prairie: A How-to and History.” The book includes a history of Sequim’s lavender industry, and information on growing, harvesting, and making crafts from lavender. Available direct from the author for $19.95 plus shipping and handling.