This week we are going to be chatting about growing, harvesting, and using herbs.
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This is an important topic because we need to know what to do after we grow a beautiful herb garden. What use are they if we don’t use them? Of course herbs make beautiful plants and we love having them around… but we need to use them!
Before we begin please read my medical disclaimer in the footnotes1
It can be hard to start something like growing herbs because it may be overwhelming to know which ones to grow first, how many of each should be grown, where to put them, and so on.
Before we talk harvesting
Each plant is a little bit different when it comes to harvesting to preserve the life of the plant if you want it to continue growing.
Some plants like dandelion can be completely pulled because the root system is also able to be ground into tea.
But before we talk about harvesting we should cover what types of plants there are and types of harvesting there are.
There are annuals, perennials, and biennials.
Annuals: The whole plant has a life within one year and dies, the dormant seeds usually fill in the gaps between generations.
Perennials: These are the plants that persist for many growing seasons. They top portion dies off and the roots remain for the next
Biennials: These plants require two years for its lifespan. The first year produces small flowers (and in the carrots’ case, carrots without flowers). The second year produces flowering and seeds. These are plants you definitely need patience with.
Why is this important?
Well if your plants can come back again and again, it’s no use to completely uproot them when you can just trim them.
Do herb plants grow back after cutting?
You are able to harvest herbs without killing the plant. Light pruning every so often can encourage regrowth as well.
When they are in peak growth, pruning is important to have them increase their yield and harvesting before a plant flowers ensures that the plant keeps producing leaves for a while.
The key to lasting plants is taking care of them frequently, using clean shears, and paying attention to their growth.
Always remove all dead areas of a plant to ensure the entire thing doesn’t die.
Plants like lavender are different, you cut down to a few inches of greenery to ensure the plant keeps producing and thriving. Check out this guide for pruning lavender to preserve the plant.
In order to prevent a plant from sort of fizzling out, it’s important to keep track of the flowering! Pinch off flowers before they bloom so the plant continues producing for you. You can keep plants coming back and producing the good stuff for you with a little upkeep.
Read on this topic more with a guide here
Take care of your plants and they take care of you! This is a new habit you are forming so get into the habit of checking the plants often and keeping on track with their routine watering, trimming, and other forms of care.
What do I cut off of my plant?
There are useful parts of plants in all forms.
Flowers, leaves, seeds, and roots.
Obviously if we are using the roots, the whole plant comes up so we will skip that one for the regrowth.
Flowers
Harvest the flowers as soon as they bloom or about to bloom for best flavor. This is a general rule of thumb, so be sure to check on your specific plant as I am trying to make a general guide to give you confidence in your beginning.
Plants like calendula, chamomile, and lavender are good plants to take this advice about. Some people take about 90% of the flowers so the others can spread seeds to resew for another growth season.
Leaves
Let’s take mint as an example here. If you need a few leaves for something, simply pinch them off with your fingers.
For more than a few, cut back to the newer leaves on the bottom to encourage the plant to keep growing. Make sure you have good watering to help the plant recover.
For a bigger harvest, avoid taking more than 2/3 of the plant so it can regrow without being at risk of dying — especially within the first year of growth.
Make sure for plants that have budding flowers, pinch them off before they bloom to prevent the plant from signaling to stop producing leaves.
Seeds
Things like coriander and anise are harvested for their seeds. They are typically gathered after the seeds have dried and turned brown.
Plants like dill can be harvested when the seeds are green.
Typically, you can just snip the plants into paper bags to catch the seeds. You store the bag in a dry area for about a week or so and then separate the seeds from the rest of the plant material and store in a glass container in your pantry.
What do I do with harvested herb?
Some can be used fresh. Most cooking herbs can be used directly from plant to dish. Fresh rosemary? Put it in the pan with your veggies!
Fresh herbs can be used in tea as well. about 1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh herbs in your tea pot to boiling water.
What if I want to store my harvested herb?
You have a few drying options
Air Dry
This method is the most simple because the herbs usually are hung or left open to dry out.
Sturdier herbs like rosemary and sage are easiest to dry because they don’t have as high a moisture content as something like lemon balm or mint. These can be hung without a paper bag if you’d like.
‘Tender leaf’ herbs like lemon balm or mint may need to be hung in paper bags to prevent mold. Poke holes in a bag and hang a small amount (5 stems) inside each bag to prevent molding.
Another way is to separate leaves by themselves so they can dry out individually
The herbs are dry when you touch them and they crumble — which can be about a week or two. Store in airtight containers in a dry area away from direct sunlight.
Oven Dry
Place your herbs on a cookie sheet and place in the oven at a low heat. Less than 180 degrees if it goes that low. You can also prop the door open a little to make sure it’s not too hot in there.
These are ready in about 2-4 hours.
Check if they crumble when you touch them.
Store these in an airtight container away from direct sunlight!
Dehydrate
If you have a dehydrator machine, the booklet may have come with instructions on this specific topic. Check to see if there is a guide for your machine and follow that.
Otherwise, set the thermostat to 95 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit. Some humid climates may need up to 125. Rinse herbs in cool water and shake or pat to remove moisture and then place in your machine. These can be ready anywhere from 1 to 4 hours.
Check to see if they crumble when you touch them. If so, they are ready.
Store in an airtight container away from sun.
Thanks for reading this week’s article. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and merry Christmas.
Next week will be a paid only newsletter as a fair warning. I will be noting if an article is free or paid in the beginning of each article so you do not waste your time if you are not a paid subscriber yet. I am going to aim to put out 1 to 2 free articles a month, but I am prioritizing my herbal 101 series so I can get the PDF’s finished and put those up for sale around May 2023.
I hope to see you all stick around for more and more. I appreciate the support from each one of you and please share this article with all your friends and family who is interested in herbs and natural medicine!
Please leave a comment below with anything you are wanting to see in the future or if I can help you with anything. Feel free to reach out on Instagram or Facebook or shoot me an email!
This publication has not been approved by your local health department or the FDA and is not intended to provide diagnosis, treatment, or medical advice. The content provided on this publication is for informational purposes only. Please consult with a physician or other healthcare professional regarding any medical or health-related diagnosis or treatment options. Information on this publication should not be considered as a substitute for advice from a healthcare professional. The claims made about specific products throughout this publication are not approved to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease or ailments.
I really enjoy your articles! There are so many different herbs and so many uses. I don't like using ibuprofen or any of these medicines that we are learning have terrible side effects. It's nice to be able to go back to more natural substances.