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Herbs

Cooking With Herbs / Growing Herbs /  Drying Herbs / Storing Herbs

 

Growing Herbs Growing your own herbs is not that difficult. You can either start with seeds or buy a few herb plants. You can plant them outside after the last day of frost in the spring in a ground bed. You can also grow them in a container either inside or outside. Just make sure they get plenty of sun and are planted in well-drained soil. Many herbs are drought-tolerant, but grow best when kept moist, but not too wet.		Basil
Coriander	Annuals and Perennials Annual herb plants - like anise, basil, chamomile, chervil, chervil, cilantro, dill, garlic, sweet marjoram and summer savory - only live for one season. They will grow into full plants that produce flowers and then seeds within one growing year. Biennial herbs - like caraway, chicory and parsley -live for two years. They will grow during one season and produce flowers and seeds in the next season. Perennials - like chives, lavender,  mints, oregano, rosemary, sage, tarragon and thyme - can grow over a number of years. They might not always survive harsh winters though.
Annual herb plants will last a bit longer if you snip the flowers as they form. If you allow the plant to seed however, the seeds can turn into new plants for the next season. When perennial herbs flower, you can choose to either cut them back or allow them to flower. Once the flowers are spent, you can cut the entire herb plant back by about one-third to prepare it for the next growing cycle. All herb flowers are edible. You can sprinkle them on salads or put them in other dishes.		Flowering Thyme
Parsley	Harvesting The best time to harvest herbs is in the early morning, just after the dew has evaporated and before the heat of the day. You can harvest them the day you are going to need them for cooking. Use sharp scissors to cut the stems. Never cut the leaves and never pull leaves off a plant. Basil and mint can be cut at a point just above a leaf pair on the stem. Chervil, chives, cilantro, dill and parsley can be cut at the base (where the stems emerge from the ground). Most other herbs can be cut at any point on the upper third of the stems, leaving about two thirds of the plants intact.
If you are planning on drying herbs (see Drying Herbs), it is best to harvest them right as the first flower buds appear. That's when the leaves contain the most oil. Seed Harvesting If you are planning on harvesting the seeds - like anise or coriander seeds - you should allow the plant to mature fully and not harvest the leaves or branches. When the seed heads are turning brown, you can cut them off the plant. You can then dry the seed heads (see Drying Herbs), remove the seeds and store them in an airtight container.		Anise Seeds
It is best to stop harvesting perennial herbs about one month before the frost starts. Annual herbs can be harvested until frost. After you harvest them, you should rinse them off with cool water. Gently shake some of the water off and let them drain on paper towels.