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Storing and drying Herbs
Vegetable Kingdom

Home :: Articles :: Useful Tips For Storing and Drying Herbs

Useful Tips For Storing and Drying Herbs

Useful Tips

• Herbs should be tried as quick as possible under natural shade, but protected from direct sunlight in any case otherwise the direct sunlight will divest the herbs from natural and valuable aromatic constituents.

• Herbs will try quickly at place where plenty of fresh air is available and, thus will not deteriorate due to oxidation.

• Never dry herbs in a garage, as petrol fumes are liable to contaminate them.

• Use a dry garden shed, ventilated and airy cupboard, an airy and sunny room, using a low-powered fan for drying purpose, keeping room temperature from 70°­90°F.

• If the drying process takes more than a week, the herbs are most likely to lose flavor and get discolored.

• If herbs are dried in microwave ovens, their chemical composition will get altered.

  Drying of Aerial Parts and Leaves

• Prepare small bunches of herbs that is leaves and aerial parts and hang them through a clip, thread, or any other method on some wire, rope, after binding them tightly. When they dry up, crumble their leaves including small pieces, if so required. If the stems have small seeds and flowers, hang them in small bunches and see that they are fully covered with paper bag so that small leaves and seeds that do not fall on ground, rather those remain contained and preserved in the bag itself This method will, invariably, apply to lavender or dill and all other such varieties that support seeds and small flowers.

• Herbs, like pot marigold, have large flowers. Such herbs should be first cut from stems and dried thereafter in trays where air can gain entry - but no dust or direct sunlight should be let in, otherwise medicinal value of the herbs will be lost.

• Wash the roots of herbs with thorough perfection and clean them so that any dust, mud adhering to the same gets removed. Roots should always be pulled out when they are fresh. After having done, as advised, chop the root into small pieces which should he spread evenly on a tray in a cooling oven or an airing cupboard.

• Garlic and onion are bulbar vegetables, whose round stem or shoot remain ingrained in the earth, should be collected during season when their aerial roots have died down.

• Bark of treeslbushes is an outer sheething cover of plants, and should be carefully removed so as not to cut the stem itself while cutting. Remove only the outer covering. As for berries, they should be collected only after they have ripened and then dealt with as in case of roots.