It’s 5:40am and the rows are still blue with shadow. Marie and her sons have been walking the field since four, filling wicker baskets before the first warm light touches the roses. By eight, they’ll be done — and our cold-press team will already be at work.
Why dawn matters
A rose’s natural oils peak in the cool early hours. As the day warms, those oils evaporate, and petals picked at noon can carry half the scent and softness of a dawn harvest. That’s why every Petalune jar starts in the dark.
Hands, not machines
Each bloom is cut by hand just below the head, leaving the plant healthy for the next flush. A good picker fills a basket in about forty minutes; Marie can do it in thirty while telling you the history of every row.
Six hours from field to press
Baskets go straight into a shaded van and reach the press within six hours. Nothing is dried or stored, so the petals arrive almost exactly as they were in the field. It’s slower and more expensive than buying extract — and the difference shows on your skin.
Our Provence partners are one of 18 family farms we work with across three continents. We visit each one at least once a year.
Written by
Adaeze Okafor
Founder
