Dried Herbs

I haven't had time or energy for crochet but my garden is using its own time and energy to produce the herbs I planted last year. My dill spread like crazy, even into my neighbor's yards and gardens. I have been making dilled potatoes and pickles with the dill. My horehound also spread like crazy, I haven't really found a use for that yet but I know it is good for colds and sore throats, so I am drying that also. The echinechea came up really well with plenty of flowers, I'm drying some of that for the fall and winter to protect myself against colds. My marshmallow spread too, it is so invasive, I tried to get rid of most of it. Marshmallow has a really intense tap root system, that is nearly impossible to destroy. But if you have the time, you can boil the roots until you get a thick liquid, then whip that liquid up with sugar and make homemade marshmallows, hence the name. I am drying a bit for tea, it's also good for sore throats. I am also drying some mint, I am using mint this weekend to make mint flavored Shisa for my hookah (see my other blog smokingthehookah.blogspot.com for more on that). My chamomile is doing really well. I pick the flowers daily and lay them on a wicker plate to dry on top of my refrigerator. Chamomile has such a nice green apple scent, I love it. I tried making tea with it last year but it was so bitter. This year, I am making a sleep pillow for my sister, for Christmas.

To dry the herbs:

• cut a few stems and wash them thoroughly
• shake them off and let them dry a bit
• remove leaves from the bottom portion (so it can be wrapped without getting moldy)
• wrap the bundle with a robber band. this works better than tying it with string because as the herb dries, it gets smaller. The rubber band will tighten as it gets smaller, string will not.
• hang the herbs in a cool airy spot where they will not get direct sunlight.
• once the leaves are crispy and crumbly, they are ready to be brought down, crumbled and stored in air tight containers.
• dried herbs are good for one year