Throughout the summer you’ve enjoyed the bounty of your own herb patch. But what if its growing more than you can use? What’s going to happen when the fall comes and you can no longer grow herbs? Is it back to the expense of the corner store or do you like the idea of drying and storing fresh herbs?

Did you know that drying and storing fresh herbs is easy and inexpensive?

There are several drying methods which are practical for the home grower. Each method has its own champion but essentially they all can do a decent job.

The first and most popular method for drying fresh herbs is air drying. This is the easiest, lowest-cost way to preserving your herbs.

Because air drying is the slowest of all the processes, it is agreed by many, this offers the best product. In the air drying process the moisture is drawn out of the herb at a temperature that leaves the natural herb oils unmoved. These oils are the very soul of the plant, giving the aroma and taste to your fresh and dried herb.

The more ‘woody’ herbs such as sage, thyme, rosemary, dill, bay leaves, oregano, and marjoram are all well suited for the inexperienced herb dryer to start their learning curve.

When and How to Harvest Herbs for Drying

Common sense is one of your best tools in recognizing when to harvest your herbs for harvesting.
1. For instance you would want to harvest the plants when their leaves contain the most oil so they will have the greatest flavor and fragrance. The best time therefore is when the plant is just coming into flower (But they can still harvest and dried herbs after they have already flowered).

2. To keep the maximum amount of oils retained by the herbs’ leaf harvest before the sun warms up the plant and the oils evaporate. So harvesting herbs before mid-day when the leaves are dry, but before the sun is hot would make sound sense.

To air dry your fresh herbs

As we said earlier air drying works best for ‘woody’ herbs such as sage, thyme, oregano, dill, and rosemary, and as such is a great place to start for the budding herb dryer. So this tip list will concentrate on using these herbs, other articles will focus on the fleshier and more delicate fresh herbs and their particular needs.
1. Harvest your herbs in small bunches, and don’t pack them together tightly. Remember we are AIR drying these herbs so we need to allow the air to get at all of the plants being dried.
2. When harvesting your herbs make sure you remove any insects or dead vegetation.
3. Lightly tie the herbs in bunches taking care not to bruise the leaves or stems – this encourages rot and mould in the drying process.
4. Remove any dead or diseased leaves. (I always remove flowers or buds at this stage).
5. Carefully rinse the branches in cool water then dry well.
6. Choose your spot carefully. suspend the bunches upside down in a warm, dry, well-ventilated area. If your herbs are resting against the wall while hung, turn them every few days to allow the bunches to dry evenly.
7. Leave the herbs to air dry for at least two weeks. It doesn’t hurt to leave them longer than that, so if you are unsure as to whether they are completely dry or not, leave them hanging. Herbs will be sufficiently dry when they are crumbly to the touch.
8. When completely dried, remove the herb leaf from its’ stem. Throw away any bunches that contain mould.
9. Store in an airtight container or airtight plastic bag in a cool, dark place. At this stage make sure you handle the herbs with dry hands. Mould is your biggest enemy.

My final tip is to think carefully about your storage packing. If you are reusing an old herb jar or similar make sure they are clean. If you’ve washed them out leave them for a day or two to ensure these no suggestion of moisture inside. If there is dry it out and again leave it for a day or two. It would be a great sadness to lose your dried herbs at this stage, after all your efforts. Still unsyre? Try reading Drying Herbs Quickly: Which Way Is Best? it may help further.

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