Home Herb Garden
Wow, you have come a long way. Your have nurtured your herbs from “babies,” watching them grow and thrive. Herbs are so very useful and are versatile. But there are a few more things you need to do before you make a cup of tea.
First, you must harvest your herbs before you use them. The timing of your harvest is important. Too hot or windy and the essential oils will disperse. Too wet from rain means that less oil is produced in the plant. One of the best times to harvest is on a calm, dry morning during midsummer.
Once the dew is gone from the leaves and before the flowers open begin to harvest the herbs. The goal here is not to remove the entire plant. Just trim the new growth which provides you with your herbs and stimulates the plant to grow again.
More than likely, you will harvest more herbs than you can use fresh. So have a game plan for preserving the abundance for future use. An additional point to remember about the harvest, you shouldn’t take more than one-third of the plant or leaves at a time. This will leave plenty of foliage for the herb to continue to thrive. And don’t forget to check your plants for insect or disease damage before you harvest.
You have three simple methods of preserving herbs; drying, freezing, and using a medium like salt or vinegar.
The process to correctly dry herbs is to gather six to twelve stems of the herbs together. Carefully remove foliage near the base of the stems. Tie this bundle together at the stem bases with string. Hang this bundle out of the sunlight in a cool place. Should you want to dry individual leaves (e.g. bay leaves) place these on a rack or screen. Turn the leaves often for proper drying. There are quicker methods of drying such as using dehydrators, ovens or even microwaves. While these will dry the herbs they will do so in a less than satisfactory result.
Freezing your herbs is simple and straightforward. Cover a baking sheet with wax paper and cut the herbs into small pieces, placing them on the wax paper. Put the baking sheet in the freezer and once frozen, overnight works well, transfer your now frozen herbs to a zipper freezer bag until you are ready to use. It’s a good idea to label the plastic bag with the name of your herb. Things tend to look the same in a freezer after a couple of months. Another freezing method I like is presented in this video below. Take a look.
Another way to preserve herbs is to use a medium (a medium is an intervening substance through which something else is transmitted). In our case, the medium is either salt or vinegar. Place you desired herbs, basil, mint, tarragon, etc. in a jar or bottle and cover with vinegar. Your herbs will keep for several months and you will also have flavored vinegar. For salt preservation, place a layer of salt in a bowl. Next layer the herbs then cover with salt. Alternate this until you have covered all of your herbs. The salt will draw the moisture out and effectively dry the herbs. Once dry, separate the herbs from the now flavored salt and store in an airtight container.
One of the best ways to use your herbs is freshly harvested from the garden. Clean the fresh herbs before using in recipes. To clean fresh herbs simply place in a bowl; substitute the sink if you have a large quantity of herbs, of cool water. Stir in two tablespoons of salt into the water. This salty water will force any insects clinging to the plant to release without any damage to the herb. Drain the water and place the herbs gently between two dish towels or dry in a salad spinner.
Know your herbs because various herbs have different uses. Each unique herb has a best way to harvest, use, or chop. Do your homework to discover the nuances of the specific type of herb you are using so to handle it correctly.
Happy Herb Gardening!
