Harvesting Herbs

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Before beginning to harvest herbs, you should be familiar with the different parts of plants and the terms for these parts. The herbage of a plant is the leaves, stalks and flowers collected together. The wood of a plant refers to the branch or trunk of a plant that can be cut into small pieces. The wood of a plant is not usually used for medicinal purposes, but forœsmoking or adding flavor to cooking and medicines. When harvesting plants, you should avoid very thick and woody plants.

 It is also important to know when to harvest. The first harvest is in the spring. This should be done sparingly, so that seedlings are only thinned instead of being cut off completely. The major harvest will come later when the herbs are in bloom, usually in July or September. Traditional September harvests are done during the Harvest Moon, the full moon nearest to the Autumnal Equinox, but annuals can be harvested until the fist frost. Perennials should not be harvested that late, but should be allowed to grow until at least forty days before the first frost.

 Different parts of the plant should be harvested at different times and in different ways. Flowers should be cut before they are completely open, as they will continue to open after they have been cut. Also, essential oils are most concentrated when the flowers are buds that are almost ready to blossom. The exceptions to this rule are hyssop, oregano, thyme, mint, chamomile, goldenrod, and yarrow, which should all be harvested later, at the peak of the flowers' bloom. Leaves should be young but full grown, and free of debris. When you harvest leaves, cut the steam off as well, not just the leaf. Lay the leaves on a flat surace surface in a single layer with no overlaps. Roots should be dug at the end of the summer or early fall. They should be stored whole in a cool dry place. When the root is kept whole it keeps it potency. Bulbs should be dug in the fall after the leaves turn brown. Bark should be cut in the sproing spring. Make parallel cuts up the branch and lift portions of the bark off. Make sure not to girdle the bark which means Girdling is cutting a strip that circles the tree instead of cutting up and down the tree.

 Start your harvest in the early morning. By this time the dew on the plants should have evaporated, but the essential oils should not have been dissipated by the sun. Do not gather more material than you can work with in one morning, and if you still do not use all of your plants hang the unused ones in a cool, dark place with air circulation. Select only the best specimens and handle them as little as possible. Never handle plants when you have open cuts or sores on your hands, especially if you are sure the plants are poisonous. Another thing you should never do is store poisonous and non-poisonous plants near each other.