Whether you grow them for their many medicinal purposes, for use in the kitchen, or simply for their beauty and fragrance – herb gardening can be a lot of fun! Knowing when to plant and how to care for your herbs is half of being a successful gardener. Often more important is knowing the proper techniques for harvesting your precious herbs. Read on for some priceless tips and tricks that will help you get the most out of your garden.
1. The One Third Rule
For most herbs, you never want to harvest more than one third of the entire aerial growth at one time. This ensures that the plant will have plenty of leaves to regrow itself afterward. However, there are some exceptions to the rule. Chives, for example, grow back faster if all of the leaves are cut off within an inch to a half inch from the ground. Many species in the mint family (including catnip and lemon balm) regrow more efficiently if all of the stems are harvested at once – cut above the first or second set of leaves from the base of the crown.
2. When to Begin Harvesting
The earliest time that its safe to harvest your herbs varies from plant to plant. Here are some of the most commonly grown herbs and their corresponding ages or times of year to begin harvesting:
3. How to Harvest
Different types of plants have different preferred methods of harvesting. Leafy annuals like basil should be gathered by pinching off bunches of leaves from the tips of the stems. Be sure to clip stems close to a leaf-pair so as not to leave a stub. This will help the plant to regrow and encourage bushier plants with more tender leaves for the next harvest. Herbs with long stems like cilantro, parsley, lavender, and rosemary should be cut near the base of the plant – about an inch from the ground. Leafy perennial herbs such as oregano, thyme, sage, and tarragon can be harvested by the stem or sprig.
4. Flower, Seed, or Leaf?
Some herbs may be harvested for multiple purposes. Knowing when and how to harvest these plants for your specific purpose may require a bit of finesse. Cilantro, for example, has a short life-span that progresses rapidly from seedling to flower and seed. If your goal is to harvest cilantro for its leaves, you’ll have to keep an eye on these plants. Once they bolt, leaves become scarce and the herb will have to be replanted. However, if your desire is the coriander, you’ll want to wait until the flowers form seed pods then trim the entire stems and place them upside in a paper bag to dry. Herbs such as lavender and echinacea which are grown primarily for their flowers should be harvested just before the blooms are fully opened for a more potent and longer lasting aroma. Other herbs like basil and fern-leaf dill are commonly encouraged to produce more leaves by removing flower stalks once they appear. Herbs such as oregano, thyme, and mint are most flavorful just before they begin to bloom, making this the best time to harvest their leaves. Many herbs can also be allowed to go to seed in order to propagate themselves. Cilantro / coriander is very easily replanted this way throughout the growing season due to its large seed pods. Parsley is another herb that is easily harvested for its seeds as they grow in bunches on the ends of the plant’s flower stalks. Some herbs like basil and oregano have tiny seeds which are best harvested by clipping off matured flower stalks and allowing them to dry in a cool, dark, protected environment.
5. Harvesting Clippings
On the topic of propagation, there are many herbs which may be harvested and regrown from clippings. Some good examples are basil, rosemary, and mint. Lovely leafy basil clippings are made by cutting off a few long stems, removing all but two to three leaf-pairs as well as any flower stalks, then placing the stems in water to root. Rosemary and mint clippings may be taken from fresh new growth, trimmed of extra leaves (to form a long-stemmed sprig), then planted directly into damp soil. (Further reading: 17 Foods to Buy Once and Regrow Forever)
6. Knowing When to Stop
Some perennial herbs can be harvested year-round like cold-hardy thyme and rosemary. Others should be allowed a rest period before the first frost so the plants aren’t stressed before they go into dormancy. For leafy perennials like sage and mint, you’ll want to do your last big harvest about two months before the first expected frost then harvest only lightly from that point on unless your herbs are in pots and you plan to bring them inside for the winter.
7. Drying Herbs dry herbs
This is probably the most popular and widely-used method for preservation of harvested herbs. Drying works well for woody-stemmed herbs like rosemary, oregano, and lavender. Simply cut off long stems, bundle, and hang them up to dry. When harvesting herbs for drying, make certain that they are free of dew to avoid mold growth. Alternately, you can use a food dehydrator to quickly preserve your fresh herbs without the risk of contamination. These handy machines have a long list of other great uses as well.
8. Oil and Butter
Add cut herbs to olive oil or make herb-flavored butters to preserve them. This technique cuts down on wilting and discoloration, and often seals in flavors better than other methods. Just remember that your herbs must not have drops of water on them when they are added to oil, otherwise you run the risk of bacterial contamination. To be extra safe, you may want to dry your herbs using one of the methods listed above before adding them to oil or butter. Also, check out this great article for more tips on using oils and butter to preserve your fresh herbs.
9. Preserve With Vinegar
Herbs can also be preserved with vinegar. Save bottles and corks to reuse for this technique. Simply add your fresh herbs like rosemary, tarragon, or basil to clean glass bottles and fill with a vinegar of your choice. Remember that your herbs will have to compete with the flavor of the vinegar they are stored in. Try mild white vinegar for more delicate herbs. For powerful herbs like rosemary or basil, use full-bodied vinegar like apple cider vinegar.
10 Freezing Herbs Freeze Herbs
For tender leafy herbs like basil and mint, freezing them tends to preserve their flavors better than drying. There are three excellent methods for doing this: Paint the leaves with oil and store them flat in a resealable freezer bag. Chop up your herbs in a food processor or blender with a little bit of oil to form a paste. Wrap in wax paper and freeze. Then, when you’re ready to use your preserved herbs, simply cut off however much you need and replace the rest back in the freezer. A clever way to freeze herbs without oil is to chop them up and drop the pieces to ice cube trays filled with water. When you’re ready to use them, simply pop out a cube or two and thaw your herbs as needed.
11. Salt and Sugar
Use salt to preserve herbs like rosemary, tarragon, marjoram, and oregano. Alternate layers of salt and whole leaves in a jar (or other resealable container) pressing firmly between layers until the jar is full. Alternately, add about 6 tablespoons of herbs to one cup of coarse ground salt in a blender and mix until well incorporated. Store salted herbs in air-tight containers until ready to use. For sweet herbs like mint, use sugar instead of salt for a flavorful treat!
75 Safe and Effective Herbal Remedies from Mother Earth News
By Michael Castleman
October/November 2010
My wife is an M.D. trained in pharmaceutical medicine. She prescribes drugs every day, but also recommends medicinal herbs. In our medicine cabinet, we stock drugs and herbs, but we use more of the latter. When we catch colds, we prefer echinacea and andrographis (immune-boosting herbs proven to speed recovery), ginseng (ditto), licorice root (for sore throat), tea or coffee (caffeine helps relieve stuffed nose and chest congestion), eucalyptus lozenges (for cough), and pelargonium (if post-cold bronchitis develops).
Thirty years ago, when I started writing about herbal remedies, the vast majority of M.D.s (my wife included) never recommended herbs over drugs. Today, doctors are increasingly open to recommending nondrug alternatives given reasonable evidence of safety and effectiveness. Unfortunately, many medical authorities still disparage medicinal herbs. Critics make four accusations: Herbs are ineffective, unsafe, unregulated and, when they work, they’re not as strong as drugs.
Ineffective? Hardly. As I document in my book, The New Healing Herbs, thousands of studies confirm the effectiveness of medicinal herbs for hundreds of conditions. Unsafe? Like drugs, medicinal herbs can cause harm. Anything that’s pharmacologically active can. To ensure safety, purchase a guide that emphasizes safety, such as my book or the American Botanical Council’s ABC Clinical Guide to Herbs, or check out the Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database. Anyone who calls herbs hazardous is totally misinformed. Every year the American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) compiles statistics on accidental deaths from drugs, herbs, vitamins, and other supplements. The AAPCC’s most recent report (2008) records 1,756 accidental poisoning deaths. How many were attributable to medicinal herbs? Zero. In every accidental death caused by a pharmacological agent, the culprit was a pharmaceutical. And it’s been that way for many years.
Herbs are safer than drugs. University of Toronto researchers combed 30 years of medical literature (1966 to 1996) for reports of drug side effects in hospital patients. Extrapolating from the 39 most rigorous studies, they estimated that drug side effects kill an astonishing 106,000 U.S. hospital patients per year and cause 2.2 million serious, nonfatal problems. This makes drug side effects the nation’s fourth leading cause of death. The true number of drug-caused injuries is undoubtedly higher; this study focused solely on hospital patients, not the public. Note: These deaths didn’t result from medical errors; they occurred when drugs were administered as approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Unregulated? Before approving new drugs, the FDA requires drugmakers to prove them safe and effective. Such tests aren’t required of herbs, leading to claims that herbs are unregulated and, by implication, unsafe. But as we’ve seen, the supposedly stringent regulation of drugs hasn’t kept them from causing great harm.
In addition, preapproval studies typically involve only a few thousand people. Many side effects — some serious — only turn up in one user in 10,000 to 50,000, or more. These problems don’t emerge until the drug is widely used by people unaware that they are guinea pigs. Because so many new side effects turn up during the five years after approval, the FDA requires drugmakers to rewrite the warning labels of half of new drugs. Yes, drugs are regulated more stringently than herbs, but regulation doesn’t guarantee safety. Hundreds of studies show that, when compared head-to-head with herbs, drugs almost always cause more side effects. The vast majority of medicinal herbs have been used for centuries, standing the test of time.
Not as strong? Dose for dose, yes, herbs aren’t as strong as drugs. Willow bark contains a natural form of aspirin, but the standard dose (1 to 2 cups of tea or 1 to 2 teaspoons of tincture) doesn’t relieve pain as well as a standard dose of aspirin, ibuprofen (Motrin), acetaminophen (Tylenol), or naproxen (Aleve). As a result, critics dismiss herbs as medicinal wimps.
Rather than herbs being too weak, many drugs are too strong, causing side effects ranging from annoying to insufferable. Do no harm is the first axiom of medicine. This means that treatment should begin at the lowest possible effective dose. Why use a bulldozer if a broom suffices? Herbs should be prescribed first. Only those who truly need stronger medicine should use drugs, which cost more and have a greater risk of side effects. Unfortunately, American medicine does the opposite. Doctors prescribe drugs first, and only when the drugs are intolerable do some doctors suggest herbs. We don’t need medicine that’s stronger. We need medicine that’s smarter. For many common ills, herbs are cheaper and smarter.
If you’d like to try herbs instead of drugs, our Herbal Remedies for Common Ailments chart is a good place to start. These herbs have been included because of the strong clinical evidence of their efficacy.
Adapted from Rodale's 21st-Century Herbal, an upcoming book by ethnobotanist Michael J. Balick, PhD, vice president for botanical science at The New York Botanical Garden.
With just a few basic ingredients, you can make safer "green" cleaning products for a fraction of the cost of the commercial products and without the scary ingredients.
For instance:
All-natural castile soap, made for centuries with olive oil, not only washes dirt and grease from your body, but also from household surfaces and laundry.
Many herbs have potent disinfectant properties, too. Basil, bay, cardamom, clove, coriander, eucalyptus, ginger, hyssop, lavender, lemongrass, oregano, peppermint, rose geranium, rosemary, sage, spearmint, and thyme are cleaning powerhouses. All contain a multitude of plant chemicals that possess antibacterial, antifungal, antiseptic, and antiviral actions.
By adding a few drops of these essential oils to your homemade cleaning products, you can boost their cleaning power and impart a delightful fragrance that makes cleaning more pleasurable. (Always be sure to handle essential oils with care, following directions.
Use this fragrant solution to disinfect countertops, refrigerator shelves, and painted surfaces, including walls and wood trim. Feel free to experiment with other antibacterial essential oils, such as basil, thyme, or lemon.
Ingredients:
Directions: In a small, dark glass jar, combine the vinegar, water, and oil. Stir. Pour small amounts into a spray bottle as necessary. GENTLE SPEARMINT SCRUBBER This nonscratching, chlorine-free paste is perfect for cleaning cookware, countertops, and porcelain sinks and tubs. Lemon and lemon verbena essential oils also work well in place of the spearmint. Ingredients: 1 cup baking soda 1 Tablespoon liquid castile soap 10 to 12 drops spearmint essential oil Warm water (90° to 110°F) Directions: In a small, dark glass jar, combine the baking soda, soap, and enough warm water to form a thick but pourable paste. Stir in the essential oil. Apply to surfaces, wait for 5 minutes or more, then scrub with a sponge. Rinse off the residue with water.
ANTIBACTERIAL BATHROOM CLEANER
Use this fragrant spray to disinfect bathroom surfaces. Tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia) oil— which has antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal powers—helps clean and control mildew. Lavender and hyssop, which were once used as disinfectant strewing herbs, have antibacterial and antiviral properties.
Ingredients:
Directions: Combine the vinegar, water, soap, tea tree oil, lavender oil, and hyssop oil in a dark glass jar. Stir. Pour a small amount into a spray bottle to use as needed. Rinse off any residue with water.
CHLORINE-FREE GROUT CLEANER
This all-natural paste removes mildew but has no harsh fumes.
Ingredients:
Water Directions: In a dark glass jar, combine the baking soda and oil with enough water to make a thick paste. Apply the paste to grout, then wait 1 to 2 hours. Scrub with a stiff nylon brush, then rinse with water.
FRAGRANT FLOOR CLEANER
Mop floors with this fresh-smelling liquid; the eucalyptus and rosemary oils have antiviral properties. Make a fresh mixture each time you need it.
Ingredients:
Directions: In a bucket, combine the vinegar, hot water, soap (if using), and lavender or eucalyptus oil and rosemary oil. If you include the soap, rinse with clear water after using.
LEMON-SCENTED FURNITURE POLISH
Remove dirt as you add shine to furniture with this naturally lemon-scented formula. Shake well before using; buff dry with a clean cloth.
Ingredients:
Directions: In a dark glass jar, combine the olive oil, vinegar, water, and lemon or lemongrass oil. Pour a small amount into a spray bottle to use as needed.
MAGIC CARPET DEODORIZER
The spicy fragrance of this deodorizer will remind you of an island breeze. Ingredients: 1 cup baking soda 10 drops grapefruit essential oil 10 drops ginger essential oil
Directions: In a dark glass jar, combine the baking soda, grapefruit oil, and ginger oil. Sprinkle the mix over your carpet, wait an hour, and then vacuum.
FRESH AIR LAUNDRY DETERGENT
This powdered mix will clean and brighten your laundry naturally and give it a fresh outdoor scent. The recipe makes enough to last several months.
Ingredients:
Directions: In a large bucket, combine the baking soda, borax, and soap. Whisk in the lavender and clary sage oils. Store in a dark, covered container in a cool, dark location. Use 1/8 cup per medium-size load.
AROMATIC FABRIC SPRAY
Refresh upholstered furniture, drapes, linens, and mattresses with this herbal spray.
Ingredients:
Directions: In a dark glass jar, combine the essential oil and water. Pour a small amount into a spray bottle to use as needed.
HERBAL CLEANING BONUS TIPS