Garden Tips & Resources

You have planted the herbs and watched them grow and flourish. They are extremely useful in so many ways. But, using herbs from a home herb garden requires a little bit or work first.

The very first thing to do is to harvest them and getting the timing right is one of the most important things. The wind and the heat can disperse the essential oils of the herbs. You should harvest them on a still and dry day sometime around misdsummer. Fewer oils are produced by the herb on extremely wet days. Harvest the herbs just after the dew has dried form the leaves right before the flowers open. Click here for more: herbs to grow at home

Harvesting the herb does not mean removing the entire plant. You just want to take what you need at that time. You do not need to use the herbs that you are harvesting at the time that you pick them. They can always be preserved for later use.Be careful not to take more then one third of the plant’s foliage at one time. This will help the herb to recover and re-grow. You should also inspect the plant for insects and damaged leaves before you harvest it. 

Essentially, there are three ways to store your herbs; freezing, drying and #pickling’ in vinegar or salt. In order to dry herbs you need to bundle six to twelve stems together and remove any foliage near the base of the stems. You can secure the bundle with string. Then choose a cool place to hang them. If you are looking to dry individual leaves you can place them on a screen or a rack. Turn them  Remember to turn them often in order for them to dry properly. Some gardeners use machines like ovens or dehydrators etc. to dry herbs, although this may not be as good. For more visit our blog: Herb Gardens Blog

Freezing is a fairly easy method of presaervation. Cut the herbs into ¼ inch pieces and place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Once the herbs are frozen, you can place them together in a bag and store them in the freezer until use.

The third way to preserve herbs is through a medium. Vinegar is very good for preserving prepared mint, basil or tarragon and will remain usable for many months. Or you can make a flavored salt to preserve herbs by alternating layers of fresh herbs between salt. The salt will completely dry out the herb and all that is needed is to separate them and store in an airtight tub. 

You can, of course use your herbs fresh and straight out of the garden. Make sure you clean them properly before using them. To clean them correctly, place them in a bowl of clean cool water. If there is a large quantity of herbs you can use the sink. Place about two tablespoons of salt in the water. The salt in the water will drive away insects without damaging the plant. Remove the herbs from the water and dry them in a salad spinner. 

There are many different kinds of herb for many different uses. Each one will need to be picked and prepared in a slightly different way. Make sure into research the specific type of herb you are using to use it correctly. Click here for more: Herb Gardening

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