Teacher starts lavender cultivation to support village

Beyazıt Şenbük - ŞIRNAK

In order to take advantage of the lavender plant’s capacity to flourish with little water, a village teacher in the southeastern province of Şırnak has taken the initiative to spread lavender gardening throughout the village, due to the region’s water shortage.

In Özbek village of Şırnak, located on the Syrian border, agriculture is the main source of livelihood. Yet, as crops such as corn and barley do not yield enough product due to water shortages, Hasan Süleyman Köse, the principal of the village school, researched agricultural products that require less water and are suitable for the climate of the region, and found that lavender plants had the qualities for which he was looking.

With the help of 100 students, Köse started a lavender cultivation on 250 square meters of empty space at the school.

While waiting for the lavender to bloom, the teachers showed their students how to obtain products from lavender. They also asked each of their students to teach what they learned to their families.

Köse also patented their lavender products brand which they named “Lavender Scented Child.” Their main goal is to use the income from the sale of lavender products as educational support for disadvantaged students.

Stating that he believes the small-scale trial process they started at the school will be an economic outlet for their village, Köse explained that when the drought affected the yield in the village last year, it heavily affected the students and their families both economically and psychologically.

“After consulting with academics, we concluded that lavender cultivation could be done in this region. We immediately brought English lavender from Tekirdağ. Our aim is to start the change in the region with children. We showed them how to plant it, then we gave them lavender seedlings to plant in their own gardens. In the long term, we plan to produce lavender Turkish delight, cologne and cosmetics. We want to provide educational support to disadvantaged children with the income,” Köse said.