In the beginning…Soil Prep

Preparing the soil is a key part of any farming, and vital for lavender farming. Choosing where to plant our lavender, we had to consider the slope of the land and how any rainfall would drain. Lavender does not like wet roots and drainage is key. But it will still need to be watered regularly - 4 L per plant per week to be exact. We’ve also chosen to start in the area closest to the bore, for ease of access to water.
We have heavy black soil, which is not exactly lavender friendly, so adding to the soil is really going to need to be carefully considered. (More on this later)
The first step was to plough in the remains of the forage sorghum crop from last summer, then plough again and again.
Next step was to start forming the raised beds, using the sorghum as mulch matter.
We (thanks dad) were lucky enough to find an old grader blade that links to the tractor, which Craig has modified. This has been used to push the freshly turned soil and mulch into rows.
We have chosen to leave 2 metres between our rows for ease of access, as we will be hand picking the flowers.
Craig has shaped the rows so that it curves gently towards the natural drains, which happen to be on either end of the rows. It also looks so pretty.
Now this is mapped out Craig will plant out in between the rows with rye grass. How amazing will it be to walk along the fresh lawn between the rows of lavender??