Tag: Herbs

Building an Herb Pantry
DIY · Preserving · Wildcrafting

Building an Herb Pantry

Sarah

Over the years, every summer and early fall I always harvest both herbs I grow, and local ones I can sustainably harvest (for example Nettles), and I dry them to preserve for use all year, to build a herb pantry. For example, I always stock up on Thyme, Rosemary, Sage and so on. Nothing from a store competes with home-grown dried herbs in the middle of January! They are light in texture, fresh and you know exactly what was used to raise them (in most cases nothing more than water and sunshine). To dry? Cut in the morning, and stash the cut herbs in new paper lunch bags, in a cool/dry area. The herbs will air dry, preserving the oils. Once dry, pull of the stems, and place in glass mason jars, marked. You can use a food dehydrator as well, however, use the coolest setting. You want to avoid cooking the delicate oils.

However, as I started studying herbalism, I found I needed more herbs so I could make medicinal teas and tinctures. This led to more plants being grown, especially for lesser common things like marshmallow and feverfew. This summer I started building a herb pantry for medicinal use (that is separate from our eating herbs, though I do use them as well in my medicinal work), that I keep in an easy to access, yet cool/dark/dry area, so I can work easily.

However, if you don’t or can’t grow them yourself, it is easy to source. My suggestions are to buy from Frontier Co-op (their products are used in many herb bulk bins in stores, always well-marked) or Mt. Rose Herbs, both of which are highly regarded. Only buy from sources that are trusted however. Avoid herbs and spices from discount stores, and in bulk bins where no brand is marked. You have no idea what was used on them, or if it is even the actual product. (Frontier sells in large quantities, Mt. Rose sells in smaller amounts)

Culinary herbs such as:

  • Basil
  • Bay Leaf
  • Cilantro
  • Dill seed, Dill Weed
  • Ginger
  • Marjoram
  • Oregano
  • Parsley
  • Rosemary
  • Sage

Medicinal herbs & flowers:

  • Calendula
  • Chamomile
  • Comfrey
  • Dandelion Root
  • Hibiscus Flowers
  • Lavender
  • Lemon Balm
  • Marshmallow Root
  • Patchouli
  • Peppermint
  • Red Raspberry Leaves
  • Rose Flowers
  • Strawberry Leaves

There of course is so much more out there, including spices, and even more flowers and roots. Buy what you need, no more than an ounce or so at a time, unless you have a project in mind, and try to use up within a few months if you can, but make it a policy that once a year you clean out any unused herbs and spices, and send them to the compost pile.

For best results, don’t crush any larger leaves until time to use (such as red raspberry, or sage). Crumble, or finely pound, as needed. This keeps the essential oils fresher, for longer.

For best storage, invest in various glass mason jars, and seal tightly. Store out of direct light.

Dehydrating And Preserving Herbs And Flowers
Gardening · Homesteading · Preserving

Dehydrating And Preserving Herbs And Flowers

Sarah

Dehydrating and preserving herbs and flowers is a satisfying part of gardening and homesteading. If you are at all interested in herbalism, it is a much wiser choice to grow and preserve your own supply, rather than buy them – and not know how the items were grown. This is of utmost importance if you are using the dried items to make teas and tonics and will be ingesting them.

While there is the cost of a dehydrator upfront, if one wants one, the end cost of harvesting in season and preserving for long-term storage is quick and cost saving.

While there are many dehydrators on the market, most run about the same in quality. We use a L’EQUIP 528 Dehydrator, and have for about 10 years now. I like the look of the unit, and how it fits on the counter. It is also relatively quiet. The key to buying one is having a fan and an adjustable temperature setting. Nesco makes affordable dehydrators, and are work horses. Yes, there are fancier ones, but being able to start and not spend $300 has its benefits.

You don’t need a dehydrator for smaller herbs, such as chamomile and lavender, these can dried in paper sacks, in a dry and breezy area. However, if you live in a humid area, I highly recommend using a dehydrator, if it takes too long to dry you can get mold. On our sister site, TrailCooking, we talk about how you can use your oven to dehydrate. For herbs and flowers, I don’t recommend this. It is just too hot for them (where as for pasta, rice and meat, it works great!).

For best results, pick in the cool of the morning, before the air heats up. This keeps the volatile oils in where they belong. As well, some herbs can cause skin irritations if picked when hot (such as sage, you don’t want to get a lot of the oils on your skin). Some plants you will cut off sections, such as lavender, rosemary, thyme. Once dry, you can strip them off and store. For plants such as peppermints, lemon balm, sage, basil and so on, pick sections, then pop each leaf off before drying. They will be more delicate, and will crush if you strip after drying. For flowers, pick as close to the flower top as you can. Stems are tossed.

I dry at below 110°. How long it takes depends on the plant material, how thick it is, and the humidity in your drying area. In most cases it takes a few hours to a day.

Once fully dry, let cool and promptly pack into glass jars, and sealed.

Then enjoy as needed!

Herbal Hair Rinses For Every Head
DIY · Gardening · Homesteading

Herbal Hair Rinses For Every Head

Sarah

If you missed my recent post on making Rosemary Hair Rinse, for brunettes, you might not know how wonderful herbal hair rinses are. They can boost your natural hair color, leave it feeling lighter, cleaner and the smell is amazing. It can allow you to get off of conditioner as well, which often leaves your hair feeling bogged down, and heavy by the end of the day.

What types of herbs you choose will depend on your hair color and hair conditions you are trying to remedy. You can use one solo herb/spice or make a blend of them. Use what you like the smell of. One note though: Know where your herbs and spices came from. Buy organic or locally grown. Better, grow your own and dry them (it’s as simple as picking and drying in a paper lunch sack, then transferring to a mason jar, I’ll be posting more about dehydrating in the near future). Don’t use dollar store herbs. You don’t know what might be in them. The risk of lead, and other contaminants are high. Your skin is porous, so use the best – you deserve it!

Light Hair:

Calendula, chamomile, orange flowers, nettle

Dark Hair:

Rosemary, sage, cloves, lavender, mint, marjoram

Red Hair:

Calendula, hibiscus flowers, witch hazel bark, cloves

Oily Hair:

Lemongrass, peppermint, witch hazel

Dry Hair:

Citrus peel, comfrey, elder flowers, red clover

Herbal Hair Rinse

Ingredients:

  • ¼ cup dried herbs
  • 1 cup water

Directions:

Bring the water to a boil, pour over the herbs. Steep for 5 minutes, then strain. Add in another cup of water (cool), pour into a container to take to the shower.

After shampooing and rinsing well, pour the hair rinse over your hair, gently working it in. Squeeze out excess, but don’t rinse.

Makes 1 batch.

Rosemary Hair Rinse
DIY · Essential Oils · Gardening · Homesteading

Rosemary Hair Rinse

Sarah1 Comment

At a recent library book sale I came across a copy of The World of Herbs & Spices from 1978. Long ago, before the internet, I found a copy of this at a garage sale and used it to fuel my first dreams of herbalism (and natural soap making), back when I was in my early 20’s.

~ We all need a quaint photo of ourselves young and pregnant, in their herb garden, somewhere on a rocky island. ~

Flipping through it, it sure brought back memories. Especially of a favorite hair rinse I used to  make weekly to use on my hair. So long ago…I had hair past my bottom then. This rinse is for darker hair, brunettes in particular. It leaves your hair feeling light, clean and smelling wonderful.

It’s a very simple hair rinse, made of nothing more than brewed rosemary.

Drying your own is very easy. Cut off small branches and place in paper lunch sacks till dry. Nothing more needed. Once dry, strip off and store tightly sealed in a mason jar. The photo above shows the difference between commercially dried and mine. Notice how mine is green. It should almost be resiny, reminding one of pine needles. Truthfully, most who hate rosemary in food would enjoy it if they had it properly dried. And not where it resembles tindery pine needles.

Rosemary Hair Rinse

Ingredients:

  • ¼ cup dried rosemary
  • 1 cup water

Directions:

Bring the water to a boil, pour over the rosemary. Steep for 5 minutes, then strain. Add in another cup of water (cool), pour into a container to take to the shower.

After shampooing and rinsing well, pour the hair rinse over your hair, gently working it in. Squeeze out excess, but don’t rinse.

Makes 1 batch.