The 2010 Pennsylvania Lavender Festival will be the ninth annual such festival held at Willow Pond Farm, a family-owned herb farm in Fairfield, Pennsylvania, located fifteen minutes west of Gettysburg and 90 minutes from Washington, D.C., and Baltimore.

On-site admission is $5; children 12 and under are free. Please note: advanced ticket sales are closed.

Festival parking is at the nearby Fairfield Schools. Shuttle service and parking are free. Driving directions here.

Complete schedule, vendor list, food menus, and speaker lists.

Willow Pond Farm proprietors Tom and Madeline Wajda (pronounced Vy-da) produce and sell a wide variety of herb plants and herbal products, but have a special love for lavender. The farm and all plants that are sold by the farm are certified organic by Pennsylvania Certified Organic.

The festival will feature some 75 varieties of lavender for sale, other herb and perennial plants, and lavender and other herbal products.

A Note about Accessibility

Willow Pond Farm is a working farm with unpaved pathways. It is accessible, but there is uneven terrain on the grounds and in the gardens. Most of the festival’s activities are held within a manageable area for people with limited mobility. There is shade and chairs for sitting, as well as an accessible portable bathroom.

Service animals only during the Festival — no pets allowed.

About Willow Pond Farm

After 32 years in the U.S. diplomatic corps, Tom and Madeline Wajda “retired” to raise certified organic herbs in Fairfield, Pa. Since 1995 they have transformed the 32-acre Willow Pond Farm into a destination for herb and garden enthusiasts from around the country.

Fairfield and the farm lie nestled at the foot of Jack’s Mountain near the northernmost point of Virginia’s Blue Ridge. This picturesque region is resplendent with thousands of acres of apple and peach blossoms in the spring and the reds and golds of ripening fruit later in the year.

History is never far off at the farm. Fairfield itself was occupied by Confederate troops for 10 days before, during, after the Battle of Gettysburg and was on Robert E. Lee’s main retreat route. Confederate troops attempted to requisition horses at the farm but were foiled in their efforts when the lady of the house—Mrs. Musselman—hid the family horse in the kitchen.

Farm activities center around a magnificent 1760s vintage stone farmhouse thought to have been built by the mason who constructed the Fairfield Inn on Fairfield’s Main Street.

The house is not open during the festival, but is during other events. Visit the Willow Pond Farm web site for details on Boardinghouse Lunches and other events.

The Willow Pond shop is located in the early 19th-century summer kitchen, where visitors can step into the walk-in fireplace and back in history to a time when jams, jellies, and apple butter were cooked over an open fire.

The grounds include demonstration gardens featuring culinary herbs, edible flowers, antique roses, lavender, scented geraniums, salvias, medicinal herbs, biblical plants, and dye plants. The farm also features a silver “moon” garden, a shade garden, a butterfly garden, and a 250-foot-long perennial border. The butterfly garden has been recognized as a “Monarch Way Station” by the University of Kansas.

Willow Pond Farm Is Certified Organic

All Willow Pond Farm’s plants and gardens are cultivated in strict adherence to organic standards. For the past several years, the Wajdas have focused increasingly on lavender. More than three acres of plants thrive in the lavender fields with additional stock planted each year. Tom Wajda propagates more than 100 varieties of lavender—including three exclusive varieties—and a number of unique and unusual herb and perennial plants.

Willow Pond Farm Is a Culinary Destination

While gardens and lavender bring many visitors to Willow Pond, Madeline Wajda’s culinary abilities make the farm a destination for those with discerning palates. During a four-year diplomatic stint in Paris, she studied cuisine extensively and received Chef John Desmond’s Certificat. She has developed a devoted following of food lovers with her herbal dishes, and also makes more than 30 kinds of herb and flower jellies, 20 herbal vinegars, and 12 varieties of herbal flavored honey, all using the farm’s certified organic herbs. Popular items include Lavender jelly and honey, Basil Garlic vinegar, and Lemon Verbena honey.

You can visit the farm’s website at http://www.willowpondherbs.com/