Tourism
Lavender festival
Lavender Festival in Transylvania
Where the fields comes alive among landscape and fragrance
Some ATA volunteers are participating in the herbalist activities and will therefore be part of the Lavender Festival in Csekefalva. This village is located only 3 km from Sékelykerestúr and we went there to meet Noemi, the event organiser, to tell us about her enterprise and the festival.
She was born in Marosvásárhely and learned how to make preserves and syrups at home.
Her first contact with rural life was because she had relatives in a small town
where she spent a few weeks in the summer and she and her husband always wanted to live in a rural area.
23 years ago Noemi moved with her family to Csekefalva where she is a Unitarian minister. When she arrived at this place she started collecting wild herbs in the surrounding area with a plant guide.Over time she realised that herb gathering is no longer a common practice in the community, only old women and gypsy women who cannot afford to buy medicine do it.
The first impulse for her entrepreneurship came 11 years ago when an NGO started supporting women making fruit products. The organisation set up a market in Székelyudvarhely dedicated to the sale of local products and a certified community kitchen. Together with other women from Csekefalva, she went there to offer their preserves, jams and syrups but also a cultural programme of the village. From this experience the women’s enterprises started to grow. Although at the beginning the women of the community thought that everyone was making these kinds of preserves, they saw that there were people who were interested in their products because this tradition is being lost in households.Even though these foods were made with fruit, Naomi always used many herbs to produce them. This is why together with her husband they wanted to go a little further in the production process and they proposed to plant herbs. After thinking about which would be the most appropriate, they decided that they would try to grow lavender, which at that time was not a common plant in Transylvania but was known because older women used it in their wardrobes to fragrance their clothes. So in 2013 they bought some land to grow lavender but they were not aware of all the work involved, nor did they have a business plan. Little by little they have been learning and seeing the opportunities for their project to grow. They brought 9000 plants from Hungary which they use mainly to make distillates (essential oil) and to a lesser extent bouquets, for sale in small quantities at fairs and shops. From the essential oil they produce cosmetics such as soaps, deodorants, shampoos, creams, tinctures, lip balms and also she continues making syrups and jams. Today their cultivation is the largest in Harghita and Kovászna, so many people come from these counties.
The idea of the festival came about because at first people went to the field on their own to get to know it because eight years ago it was not common to see lavender plantations, you had to travel all the way to Hungary to see them. Then, six years ago, they decided to start opening the fields to the public one weekend a year and the following year two weekends a year.
Several people from the community became involved in the festival by selling local products and priority is given to the participation of local people to keep the event as local as possible.One of the main reasons for holding the festival is that by living and producing in the village, it is easier to show the process and for people to meet them personally. This also saves a lot of time and reduces the extra costs of middlemen. It is very important to know where the products we consume come from. In this case, Noemi carries out the whole process, from cultivation through harvesting and distillation to the sale of the manufactured products. At the same time, they create a personal link with the customers, who can understand the whole process and the effort required to obtain the final product.
One of the main activities is a talk that will take place every 2 hours. There Noemi shares her knowledge about lavender, her life as a herbalist and the experiences, both good and bad, she has had along the way. The talks last 15 minutes and there is time for questions afterwards. You can walk through the whole field and there are some special spots set up for taking pictures.This year there will also be a photo exhibition, surprise activities for children and the presentation of a book by a psychiatrist.
During the days of the festival Noemi is very happy, because it is the time of the year she has to talk to people and share her knowledge. Over the years she has generated many good relationships with people interested in lavender, thanks to sharing her work space. The field comes alive with visits and becomes a meeting point for people.
Many people come to the village for the event which draws the attention of the locals who could have never imagined how quickly, yet sustainably, the festival grew year by year. It is very interesting how more and more people are finding out about the event even though they don't do much publicity. On social networks like facebook the page (https://bit.ly/FB-Levendula) continues to grow organically because people share information about the event. This year they organised a competition to reach more people and it was shared a lot on social media. On some occasions Romanian TV has come to interview Noemi and they also broadcast the event on local radios.
So if you want to experience something unique like walking among the flowers, a super relaxing therapeutic experience not only from the fragrance of lavender, but also from a very special landscape, this is a good opportunity to share with the family and take some nice pictures for social media.
Noemi leaves us with some advice for people who are thinking about starting a business or are just starting one: Follow your ideas and your dreams no matter what the obstacles are. Don't do things for money and don't get obsessed with that because with time and perseverance prosperity will come.
You will be able to visit the lavender field from June 26 to July 15, but it will be open until the lavender is cut.Weekdays from 3pm to 8pm and weekends from 10am to 8pm. The products that Noemi makes with the help of ATA volunteers will be on sale there.
If this story sparked your interest towards finding out more about Rural Transylvania and possible ways to experience it, you are welcome to contact us.
· Youth Association from Transylvania at office.ata@gmail.com
· Farmers Association from the Cristuru Secuiesc Area at office.aacs@gmail.com
