We are both blessed and cursed with having an abundance of lily of the valley in two different gardens in our yard. We are blessed to have a plant that grows so easily with so little care, makes a beautiful bouquet, and smells delightful. The flowers in the front yard garden bloom first, the ones in the back about two weeks later which is perfect for extending the length of time that our house can be imbued with their fragrance. On the negative side, it is very difficul to contain their weed-like spread. They have partially pushed out the irises in both front and back yards that were transplanted from my grandmother's house, and I can barely find my chive plant any longer.
In the spirit of DIY projects this spring I decided to try turning the flowers into an essential oil. Every day for twelve days running I picked the blossoms and placed them in a jar that contained almond oil. Each day I strained the oil and added new blossoms leaving the jar out of direct sunlight. Naturally, some of the oil was lost each time I strained the mixture. Instead of the oil becoming infused with the delightful scent of lily of the valley, I was left with a rather rancid smelling oil. Oh well! I enjoyed painting them.
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