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levánta

λεβάντα

Lavandula stoechas (french name : "lavande papillon)

Lavander. As used occasionally by creative chefs.

Greece actually grows fields of French lavander, or Lavandula stoechas: the name comes from what the Stoechades islands (the ancient Greek name for the Hyères islands in southern France), where the Greeks first discovered lavander. Today it grows wild on Crete.

Topped lavender (Lavandula stoechas) between Nea Roumata and Skines, Crete, Greece

Since 2010, Lavandula angustifolia lavander (the kind used for essential oils) has been grown commercially in Greece, especially around Kozáni, where several family firms now distill it.

Herbs and Spices

Text © Dana Facaros

Images by Robert Flogaus-Faust, Serenade