Using Herbs from a Home Herb Garden

Harvesting Your Herbs

Finally the moment has arrived and your herbs are ready to be harvested. You have so many ideas about what you’re going to do with them, so this part is easy… right? Well not entirely! However with our helpful advice it should be simple.

Knowing when to harvest your herbs is one of the most important things. The oils that are so important to the taste and effectiveness of the herbs can easily be dispersed by heat or wind. Wet days likewise reduce the amount of oil that the herb produces. Therefore the best time to harvest your herbs is on a calm and dry morning in the middle of summer. Make sure that the harvesting is done before the flowers open. If you want to harvest before you intend to use the herbs then it is best if you preserve the herbs for later use.

A common mistake at this point is to cut off too much of the herb. All you really need to harvest is the part that you intend to use plus a little more growth. Never remove more than a third of the total foliage as this can be too much for the herb to regrow. Also look carefully for insects and damaged leaves at this time, as these can cause huge problems when the plant tries to regrow its leaves.

These herbs can then be used for cooking straight away. Simply place them in cool water to wash off any impurities. After this add about 1-2 tablespoons of salt to drive away any insects that may have made their home there. These herbs can then be removed and dried using a colander.

Preserving Your Harvest

If you chose to preserve the herbs there are a number of ways to do this. The most common are :

  • drying
  • freezing
  • preservation medium such as salt/ vinegar.

To dry herbs, bundle approximately 10-12 stems together and bind them with soft string or yarn. Using a pair of scissors, cut off any foliage that is near the base of any of the stems. This bundle should then be hung in a cool, dark room. Individual leaves can also be dried, however it is better to simply use a rack, turning them on a regular basis. Recently many people have been using dehydrating machines, ovens and microwaves to speed up this process. All these machines save a lot of time, but risk losing a lot of flavor, so be careful.

The easiest way to preserve herbs is by freezing them. Using a wax paper-lined baking sheet will ensure that a lot of goodness is preserved. Cut the herbs into centimeter-squared pieces using a sharp blade, then place them onto the paper and freeze. Once they are frozen transfer them from the paper to a bag and store lots of them together.

Using a preservation medium is a tried and trusted technique. Mint, basil and tarragon can be preserved by coating them with vinegar. This will keep them fresh for months. Another way is to take a herb and then layer it with salt and put another herb on top. You can keep doing this, adding layer after layer to preserve your entire harvest. Eventually the salt will draw all the water out and the preserved herb will go brown. Brush off the salt and store the herb in a dry, airtight container for later use.

These should provide you with the basic guidelines. Every species of herb is different in terms of harvesting, preparing and using them. Therefore supplement what is written here with your own research for the best results.

Want to learn more about how to grow your herbs bigger check out my article about growing herbs in pots.