Our Story
Van Hevelingen Herb Nursery was established in 1984 by Andy & Melissa Van Hevelingen selling basic herbs that were grown in just two small greenhouses in Newberg, Oregon. Back then, only 5 cultivars of lavender were available in Oregon; 37 years (and a few international trips) later, we now offer plants from a collection of over 100 varieties of lavender and hundreds of different herbs and perennials from around the world.
Melissa has given lectures for the Hardy Fuchsia Society of Oregon and for a brief time taught horticulture classes at Portland Community College. Andy, being the social butterfly of the family, has given lectures at plant and lavender conferences across the US and internationally in the UK. They've both contributed articles to Fine Gardening, The Herb Companion, Sunset Magazine, and have been featured in The Oregonian and The Country Folks Grower.
VH Herb Nursery has introduced over 20 cultivars to the plant trade over the years (see below), two of which are our fundraiser plants. All of the proceeds from our sales of these plants are donated to charity. Agastache 'Licorice Candy' benefits the Alzheimer's Association of Oregon and Lavender 'Opal Rain' benefits Parkinson's Resources of Oregon. Since 2013 we've donated over $21,000 raised from our fundraiser plants.
Our Methods
Propagation
We propagate almost all of our plants on site using seeds, cuttings, or division.
Proper botanical nomenclature is important to us and we pride ourselves on having accurate ID's and labels on all the plants we sell.
Pest Management
We appreciate and admire all of our helpful pollinators and never use any chemical pesticides (including neonicotinoids).
Instead of using harsh chemicals we release beneficial insects and nematodes for pest management.
Environmental Impact
We try to reduce our waste by sanitizing and reusing pots and materials whenever possible.
We water all of our plants by hand to conserve water.
We only have a single heated greenhouse at our nursery to minimize emissions and energy usage.
Lavandula angustifolia 'Frances'
Thymus 'Lemon Frost'
VH Introductions
These are the cultivars that we've introduced to the plant trade:
Agastache × mexicana 'Licorice Candy' (2013)
Lavandula angustifolia 'Blushing Bride' (2018)
Lavandula angustifolia 'Cedar Pink' (2016)
Lavandula angustifolia 'Frances' (2020)
Lavandula angustifolia 'French Fields'
Lavandula angustifolia 'Melissa' (1999)
Lavandula angustifolia 'New Zealand Blue' (2015)
Lavandula angustifolia 'Opal Rain' (2013)
Lavandula angustifolia 'Royal Velvet' (1988)
Lavandula × chaytorae Ana Luisa' (1998)
Lavandula × chaytorae 'Isabel' (2022)
Lavandula × chaytorae 'Jennifer' (2001)
Lavandula × chaytorae 'Kathleen Elizabeth' (Silver Frost) (1994)
Lavandula stoechas × viridis 'Ivory Crown'
Lavandula × pedunculata 'Portuguese Giant' (2002)
Nepeta 'Pink Pixie' (2009)
Thymus 'Lemon Mist'
Thymus 'Lemon Pincushion'
Thymus 'Lemon Frost'
Thymus 'Chehalem Valley' (2009)
Tulbaghia violacea 'Snow Flurry' (2009)