Lavender has a short season so mark your calendars to get outside this June and enjoy it at Lookout Lavender, a lavender farm near Chattanooga.
Did you know there’s a lavender farm on Lookout Mountain? I found out about this place a few years ago and have always shared this experience with friends every year since. It never disappoints and I highly recommend visiting this lavender farm. Continue reading to learn what all Lookout Lavender has to offer and more.
Lookout Lavender
Lookout Lavender is a small, local farm on Lookout Mountain near Rising Fawn, GA. The 55 acre farm was purchased in 2016 by Alice and Bill Marrin. They were looking to find a nice farmland to call home as they near retirement. On the property is a rustic farmhouse that fits the farm’s scenery well and the land is well developed for growing beautiful plants. After visiting a lavender farm near Atlanta, the couple decided to try their hand at it. They created their own lavender farm on the property which they open in June for uPick events. The Lav Shack is open longer which hosts a plethora of hand-made lavender products.
When to Pick Lavender
Unfortunately, lavender season is short so Lookout Lavender only offers a few weeks of picking in mid-June. My friend and I first went on a Sunday afternoon in 2020 and I have visited every year since. The lavender farm is open for uPick most days of the week for a few hours at a time. Check their uPick schedule to plan for your visit with friends and family before the season is over.
There is an initial $5 per person fee to enter the lavender farm while children 12 and under are free. When you pay this fee you will be offered a pair of scissors and will be shown how to cut the lavender as well as what qualifies as a bundle. A uPick bundle is only $7.
Here is the exact location of the farm. When you get to the gravel driveway, fork to the right where you’ll see the Lookout Lavender sign. Follow the gravel drive all the way to the open field for parking. Below are photos of the driveway and entrance. The last photo is of the parking area. They are expanding and improving every year so it might look a little different than the photos below.
The Breakdown of the Lavender Fields
The first section is split with a few rows containing smaller lavender plants that are grown strictly for culinary. You can purchase a bundle of these as well if you wish to try baking or cooking with lavender. There’s endless recipes you can try with lavender. Lemon appears to be a popular flavor pairing and I have found recipes for everything from drinks and cocktails to baked goods and marinades. A couple years ago, I grabbed a bundle to try and discovered some great lavender recipes.
The second section behind this has a couple of benches within the rows. This section is for photography. You are welcome to use the entire field to take pictures as you wish. So, if you’re a photographer or know one, this location would be a great place to visit for portraits with Chattanooga lavender. If you’re taking professional photos, you need to contact Lookout Lavender to schedule a time to do so as it is not allowed during uPick events. Besides, this way you can enjoy the fields privately and get better photos without other people in the background.
Lastly, the rest of the sections are for uPick lavender. Lavender can fluctuate in color and size so you are encouraged to go throughout and pick from multiple sections and plants to create a unique bundle full of dimension and color. Again, this lavender farm is always expanding so the field layouts may be a little different this year.
Additional Lookout Lavender Offerings
In addition to picking your own Chattanooga lavender bundles, you can visit the Lav Shack on site. This little store contains lavender based products made directly from lavender grown on the farm. From lip balm to lotions they have a variety of personal care items to offer. But personal care isn’t the only lavender product category here. Be sure to visit and see what else you might discover. You can also buy some items online. Their online store can be shopped year-round. Note that availability may be low depending on the season.
You can even buy lavender plants to take home and raise yourself. And this year they are offering a larger variety of plants to purchase. The Lav Shack also has candles, sachets, dried lavender bundles, culinary lavender items, and the list goes on. Including the highly requested lavender honey made in partnership with Shinbone Valley Bee Company. The bees are kept right here on the farm and the culinary lavender is used to infuse the honey. I tried this honey last year and it was amazing! And new for this year are lavender jams and jellies, lavender simple syrup, and lavender baking mixes. You’ll definitely wanna check out all these items during your visit. Note that during the uPick events everything will be outside under a tent, not inside the Lav Shack, due to higher traffic.
This year, Lookout Lavender has teamed up with Clumpies, a local ice cream shop here in Chattanooga. On the farm you will be able to purchase their unique blueberry lavender ice cream.
Key Tip for Transporting your Fresh Lavender
Immediately after you pick your Chattanooga lavender bundle, hold it upside down. It starts to dry quickly in the summer heat. And as it dries, it falls to gravity. So, if you hold it upright, the flowers will start to bend towards the ground instead of standing straight up like normal. For your ride back home, I suggest laying them down in a safe place.
What to Do with Your Lavender
The possibilities are endless when it comes to using your fresh Chattanooga lavender. Here are a few tips and suggestions to get you started.
Drying Lavender for Scent
Lavender is one of the best flowers to dry because, unlike most dried flowers, lavender keeps its color and even its scent. If you intend to keep the lavender as decoration, you can dry it. If you’re keeping it in a vase or hung up somewhere that it won’t be bothered, then this is the method for you. Find a dry place to hang the bundle upside down so that it can dry out for about two weeks. Keep them out of direct sunlight to prevent fading and make sure they won’t be disturbed while they dry. This will prevent the blooms from falling off. You can use a hanger in a closet or a paperclip on a cabinet. Just make sure they hang upside down by the rubber-band that’s given to you as part of the bundle.
Protecting Dried Lavender
If when you dry your lavender you feel the need to protect it, I highly suggest utilizing this tip. Note that most of the scent will be lost, but the overall bunch will be safer from falling apart.
After the bundle is dried, use an unscented hair spray to cover the flowers. Using unscented will allow the lavender smell to still pull through afterwards, although not as strongly if they remain unsprayed. DON’T spray the flowers directly as they will be fragile, just lightly mist the spray above the flowers and let it lightly fall onto the blooms. They don’t need a whole lot, so a little goes a long ways. This will seal them in and help keep the individual buds from falling off the stem. Now you have yourself a beautiful bundle of dried lavender that will keep for a long time and you can use it however you would like.
Other Uses for Lavender
There are plenty of other uses for lavender. Some ideas would be to make your own moth balls, make a sachet to keep your clothes drawers smelling fresh, or place some inside your pillow to help you sleep. The scent from the lavender is known to relieve stress and help you sleep among other aids and boosts. There are countless other uses for lavender so I encourage you to look some up online. If you have any other great ideas of how you like to use your lavender, let me know in the comments below.
In Closing
If you’d like to see more about my first experience at Lookout Lavender from 2020, be sure to watch the YouTube video.
I also recorded my first ever “Behind the Business Chatt” with Lookout Lavender. Listen to the podcast to learn more about the behind the scenes of starting this ever-growing lavender farm. A big thank you to Alice and Bill for allowing me to record our conversation and share it with you. When you visit Lookout Lavender, be sure to tell them “hi” and that I sent you!
Until next time, enjoy Exploring Chatt!
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