FRAGRANT smells will be filling the air in the coming days as a lavender farm completes its first harvest.

Workers will be going back to basics by using hedge trimmers and large sacks to cut down and collect some of the 80 different varieties of lavender growing at Deer Park Farm, at Wintringham, near Malton, North Yorkshire.

The fields of lavender were created by husband and wife team Steve and Anne Jaques, on a 12-acre site previously used as a piggery.

"We have about five or six people working on site every day. It is hard work, especially during the harvest, but it is going well," said Mr Jaques, who is the director of the Eden Camp wartime theme museum in Malton.

The Seal variety of lavender has most recently been harvested and dried using large generators to pump out warm air.

As the fragrance stays in the flower for up to two years it is best suited for pot pourri.

Five acres of land are currently planted with lavender, ranging in colour from deep purples to blues and whites.

Ultimately, more than eight acres will be planted and permission has been secured for a distillery to create essential oils used in aromatherapy.

Only half a mile from the picturesque Wolds Way footpath, the site has attracted the attention of many visitors, who can call at the farm's garden, shop and tea room.

Mr Jaques said: "This is a real boost for the local economy for the Wolds, and a real transformation for a site that was derelict and knee-deep in muck."