You have potted or planted your herbs and now the foliage is full and healthy, perhaps a year after planting. Herbs have so many uses, away from the main plant. Harvesting and preserving herbs for any of their multiple purposes requires knowledge and proper technique.

When you harvest herbs, you are collecting the essential oils they produce. Naturally your herbs will be the most useful when they have the most oil in the leaves and stems. Rain causes herbs to produce less oil, and wind and heat can reduce the oil, evaporating it. Choose a windless morning in midsummer after the herb plant has begun flowering, when rain is not expected. After the dew dries but before blossoms open is the perfect time to harvest.

Harvesting home herbs means taking a small amount of the plant for use, not uprooting the entire plant. Try to remove no more than one third of the total plant when harvesting. Pruning prompts new growth, but remaining leaves will need to make food for the whole plant in the meantime. Inspect the plant for any damage from insects or disease prior to harvesting.

Herbs from a home herb garden do not need to be used immediately. This is good news if you have a large harvest. You want to retain the oils in the plant while avoiding rot. Preserve them for later use in one of three ways: dried, frozen, or pickled in salt or vinegar.

Drying herbs takes little effort and has not changed in centuries. Count six to twelve stems and create a bundle. Remove leaves from the ends of stems and tie the bundle with string. Hang upside down to dry in a cool space away from sunlight. Alternately, you can dry individual leaves. Remove leaves from stems and lay them out on a rack or screen. Turn the leaves often until dried. You could use a dehydrator, microwave or oven to remove the water from the leaves, but the results may not be as satisfactory.

Herbs can be frozen to lock in their essential oils. Prepare a baking sheet by lining with wax paper. Chop herbs into pieces about 1/4 inch in size. Place herbs on the baking sheet in a single layer and freeze. Once frozen, the herbs can be collected in a container and stored in the freezer for later use.

Pickling herbs is preservation of the herb in a medium. Mint, basil and tarragon are herbs you can combine with vinegar to preserve the herb flavors for many months. Create a flavored salt by layering fresh herbs with salt. The salt draws the water out of the leaves, leaving the oils and flavor. Once the herbs are dry and brown, shake out the salt and store the herbs in an airtight container.

Instead of preserving every herb you harvest, you will use some herbs fresh from the garden. Remove dirt and insects prior to using in food. Wash the leaves and stems gently by immersing in cool water. Use a large bowl or the sink basin to give the leaves room. Add salt to the water to drive insects from the leaves; use two tablespoons for a large bowl. Dry the herbs with a salad spinner as you would delicate lettuce.

Different herbs have varied uses and varied harvest methods or preservation methods. Get to know the herbs in your home herb garden and the best ways to harvest and preserve each. You want the best flavors, aromas and colors from your herbs and knowing how to use them properly will help you achieve that.

Once you’ve grown your favorite herbs in a home garden, you
may want to store some for use later on. There are many ways
to keep your herbs full of flavor and beneficial oils. In
order to retain as much of the nutritional ingredients as
possible, it is important to take the right steps.

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