Linden Fair at Buis les Baronnies

"The Linden fair in Buis les Baronnies took place on the first Wednesday in July. Early in the morning the local producers bringed "bouras" full of blossoms and lined them up along the sycamore avenue. They set the price with the purchasers and then weigh the bourras on the antique Roman scale.

Linden production developed at the start of the 20th century with the arrival of the railways, which allowed for rapid transport of great quantities at a modest price. The Linden thus generated a non-negligible extra revenue following the crises in the silkworm breeding and madder plant industries which had seriously hurt the local economy.

The blossoms are stilled gathered in the traditional manner. The flowers are hand picked, then spread out and dried for 4 to 7 days in an attic, sheltered from the sun, before being packed into the bouras.
In the face of Asian and East European competition, the producers have joined togetherin a syndicate to promote production locale and have created a trade name guaranteeing the quality, the "The Medicinal Linden Flower of the Baronnies".