Advertising

Tips For Drying Garden Herbs

| Print |

E-mail

Written by Lee Dobbins

Thursday, 17 July 2008

by LeeDobbins

There are herbs that are grown in the garden for the simple fact that they are both beautiful and fragrant. Many herbs will be harvested to serve a practical purpose. This includes aromatics, seasonings, medicinal use, and more. In this case, drying garden herbs is required to preserve them. There are several traditional drying methods including using a bag, tray, or just the air. Here are some tips on how to dry fresh herbs from your garden.

Several flowering herbs also yield seeds to harvest. Simply give the flowers ample time to dry, then wrap some paper around the flower and pour the seeds into a container. The leaves can also be preserved with just a few more steps.

Remove the roots and flowers from the plant. Soak the rest of the plant in water for two to three hours. Soaking will help you remove all of the soil from the plant's stalk and stems. After you have washed away all of the soil put the plant on a towel to dry.

Place the plant in a small sized paper bag. The flower will now be gone, but place this end inside with the stalks showing about an inch to two inches out the top of the bag. Place a tie on the bag around the stalks, putting it upside down. Upside down meaning from the point of view of the plant. For example, the bag should be on it's base and the stems should be facing up. The leaves will become saturated with the flavor and the aroma when the oil in the stems moves using a capillary action.

If the bags are kept in a fairly dry place, the leaves of the plants should be brittle within two weeks. Some may take less time, some more. Carefully take them out of the bag and take the leaves off of the plants and put them in an air tight container. This will preserve them until you are ready to use them for cooking or to put into potpourri.

If you decide to use a tray for drying garden herbs only keep the leaf stems and leaves. Lay them flat on a tray without overlapping. Store them in a dark, well ventilated place free of moisture. Flip the leaves and stems everyday to ensure even drying. Your herbs should be dried within a few days with this method.

If you're short on time, turn to your kitchen microwave for help. Absorption will be better if you place the herbs in the microwave on top of a paper towel or paper plate than a microwave-safe one. You can microwave for a few minutes on medium power. The variety and quantity of herb, in addition to your kind of microwave, will determine the time you need to cook, but 2 to 3 minutes is good for most uses.

Check relative dryness by rubbing a leaf between your forefinger and thumb. The leaf ought to be brittle, crumbling with little pressure. If not, try it again at half-minute intervals until you have found the right dryness for your intentions.

Warning: drying garden herbs in the microwave is time sensitive. A microwave oven causes evaporation by causing the moving water molecules in food to heat. Once moisture is gone you won't be drying the plant, and what's more, it is possible to harm your microwave. You will cook the herb if you have the power too high or set the time for too long. It is necessary to try different things until you discover what works for you particular circumstances.

About the Author:

You can learn more about planting and harvesting herbs as well as get information on drying garden herbs at http://basicherbgardeningtips.com/ where you will get basic tips for growing herbs both indoors and out.

Only registered users can write comments.
Please login or register.