THERE ARE DISTINCT SEASONS, spread out spectacularly across California, that put their flowery focus on specific specimens. Lupine season, ice plant season, and a soft season for wisteria, too; the flower-focused fandoms have plenty to celebrate across the Golden State, all year long. But if you want to love upon lavender, you're going to likely do so in May, June, and July, when the purple-strong, super-herbaceous, ultra-fragrant favorite has its heady heyday. Of course, you're not always going to encounter purple carpets that look as if they were made for the cover of a calendar — plenty of fields are just getting going in May, with a wind-down in July — but you will come across a host of lavender foods, soaps, and other goodies that speak to this late-spring, early-summer star.
123 FARM, at Highland Springs Ranch and Inn, is a lovely lavender locus over several weeks beginning in early May. The destination's annual "Lavender Festival" opens May 2, 2025, and there's lots to know about the evening affair — it's open on select dates, for starters — before making your way to the Cherry Valley spot. Live music, around 100,000 lights, and a lavender-inspired menu are favorites of this later-in-the-day festival, which is marking its 21st anniversary in 2025. It all wraps up July 20, with a peak bloom expected to stretch from the middle of June to the middle of July.
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WATCH HERETICKETS ARE ON SALE: If you'd like to witness the fields at their most powerfully purple, your best bet is to keep tabs on the farm's social media feeds in order to time your visit to the bloomiest moment. Looking for workshop info, tasty bites to tempt, and other delightful diversions? Follow your lavender-loving nose to this site now.
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