Moratalla · Lavender
Murcia · Región de Murcia
66 % were left standing: fields not harvested this year (abandoned or unprofitable at current prices) or that the satellite never saw being cut.
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Fields of lavender, lavandin and spike lavender in the uplands of Moratalla, in north-west Murcia, especially around hamlets such as Campo de San Juan, Béjar and El Sabinar. In July they turn the high plains mauve.
What grows here
Three aromatic plants are grown here, lavender, lavandin (a hybrid) and spike lavender, mainly for essential oil. The flowers are distilled in stills close to the fields, sometimes in shifts running from dawn until late at night.
Municipalities
Moratalla
Sources
- https://www.turismoregiondemurcia.es/es/lugar_de_interes/campos-de-lavanda,-lavandin-y-espliego-6713/
- https://territoriolavanda.es/lavanda-moratalla/
- https://territoriolavanda.es/lalavand/
- https://www.cope.es/emisoras/region-de-murcia/noticias/moratalla-viste-lavanda-revela-encantos-ambicioso-plan-despoblacion-20260430_3355156.html
- https://elnoroestedigital.com/la-obtencion-de-esencias-aromaticas-en-las-calderas-del-noroeste-murciano-2/
Usual season
From early July to late July
A guide based on past years, not a forecast: every year is different.
Festival
Lalavand festival (Moratalla, Lavender Country) ↗
spring to autumn, with most events during the July bloom
Did you know?
Before it was farmed, spike lavender was gathered wild on the hillsides and distilled in large copper boilers beside springs and ponds. The season ran from St James's Day to St Bartholomew's, 25 July to 24 August.
Tell me when it blooms
We will email you when flowering starts. One email per season, no advertising.
When it happens
Usual range: the dates between which it has happened in past years, with a few days' margin. Once the satellite sees it, it is marked as seen.
Fields
Each lavender field: standing, probably harvested (the satellite has seen the drop once) or harvested (confirmed).
Past seasons
| Year | Bloom | Starts | Ends | Not cut |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | — | 8 Aug | 5 Sept | 61 % |
| 2025 | — | 8 Aug | 24 Aug | 57 % |
| 2024 | — | 3 Aug | 14 Aug | 53 % |
| 2023 | — | 4 Aug | 1 Sept | 73 % |
| 2022 | — | 20 Jul | 13 Aug | 1 % |
| 2021 | — | 3 Aug | 22 Aug | 51 % |
| 2020 | — | 3 Aug | 28 Aug | 39 % |
| 2019 | — | 3 Aug | 28 Aug | 32 % |
| 2018 | — | 8 Aug | 11 Sept | 39 % |
| 2017 | — | 31 Jul | 9 Sept | 26 % |
Starts: 10 % of fields seen cut. Ends: 90 % of what gets cut that season. Not cut: lavender fields not seen cut that year; when there are many (2019, 2026) the end comes early even though much is left standing.
2026: live, we saw the harvest start on 17 Aug, with 66 % left uncut at the end; revised with every satellite image, it started on 8 Aug and 61 % was left uncut. The table uses the revised figure, as in every other year.
Bloom is estimated from photos and forecasts (±1 week); harvest is measured by satellite.