“How I would love to be transported into a scented Elizabethan garden with herbs and honeysuckles, a knot garden and roses clambering over a simple arbor.” – Rosemary Verey
Signs of fall are beginning to pop up everywhere at Pure Grace farms. The green bean plants look shaggy, corn stalks are turning yellow, and pumpkins have turned bright orange overnight.
A sure signal it’s time to harvest the flavorful home grown herbs planted in late spring and early summer, before the chill sets in. Now is when sustainable living kicks into full gear. Homegrown tomatoes will be canned, frozen, sun dried and made into every kind of sauce imaginable. Root vegetables, leafy greens, onions and garlic are readied for planting to ensure a steady supply of pure food over the winter and on into spring of next year.
When harvesting your herbs it is good to remember that basil, savory, parsley, marjoram and dill are considered tender herbs and will not survive even a light frost. The leaves from these herbs should be harvested and the plants removed. For sustainable living, you can leave a few plants until they flower and produce seed. Then harvest the seeds to use for next years season.
Oregano, thyme, tarragon, rosemary, mint and sage are hardier herbs. Harvest the leaves heavily leaving plants intact. Before the first frost, place a clay pot upside down over the herbs and spread a thick layer of straw around the pot. This helps to keep the plants viable and they will return in full force next year in spring and early summer.
Preserving homegrown herbs makes sense. You save money, they are delicious for pure food recipes and preserving also increases your progress towards sustainable living.
Fresh herbs are a delicious way to season pure food recipes. Unfortunately, they do not stay fresh forever.
I would like to share with you three simple ways I preserve my herbs after harvesting. The first way is to freeze them in small usable portions. These little cubes work great in soups and sauces for a wonderful homegrown fresh flavor.
The second way I preserve herbs is using sea salt as a natural preservative. The beauty of sea salt is that it preserves your herbs fresh and once preserved no refrigeration is necessary.
The final way I preserve my herbs is by drying on a simple homemade drying rack. Tim has made several racks. They are great for stacking. The drying process is quick and easy.
Once dried, herbs can be mixed together in different combinations to make tasty blends that save you the expense of buying them at the grocery store. Best of all you know exactly what you are getting when you grow, preserve and make your own blends. Sustainable living at it’s best.
I will be sharing my favorite seasoning blends in my upcoming post. Write and tell me your all time favorite seasoning blend and I will spread the love and share some of those recipes in my next post.
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Seven Springs Homestead:Green Thumb Thursday
I have done all of these. Great ideas for others to try. Homegrown herbs are the best!
I agree Jenny. I try to grow enough to last me all year til the next season comes along. Spices are so expensive in the store, it is a great way to save money. Thanks for stopping by!
Shari,
I am so impressed with everything, but especially the herbs in the sea salt. This is a great idea. What do you normally use this in? You will have to write a post about making your own garlic salt and onion salt. I would love to know how it is done. What type of salt do you use?
Blessings,
Diane Roark
I use my salts in many of my dishes in replacement for any salt that is called for. I especially find it handy when I am in a bit of a hurry and do not have time to chop up fresh herbs, onions or garlic. I also make all my own seasoning blends and these salts work beautifully. I always use coarse sea salt when making when preserving my herbs, that way when I mix them together the salt doesn’t get blended to finely. Hope this helps! Blessings…Shari
Shari, I love your tips- thank you so much. I have never tried preserving in sea salt- do you leave the herbs in the salt, or do you take them out after a period of time? Does it infuse the salt with flavor? That would be a wonderful side benefit! 🙂
Joy @ Yesterfood recently posted…Oatmeal Scotchies
The herbs are incorporated into the salt… infusing the salt with flavor. Creating a delicious seasoned salt. I also make my own celery salt, garlic salt and onion salt with this method. Works like a charm and no fillers or preservatives like in the alternative products you buy in the store!
Excited to have shared this with Thrifty Thursday Link Party. A great find with ton’s of Thrifty ideas….right up my alley!
I just pinned the herbs; frozen and preserved in sea salt. I cannot wait to see your blends! Carrie, A Mother’s Shadow
Thanks Carrie, I love that you stopped in for a visit, and pinned my recipes too…what a bonus! I hopped on over to your site A Mother’s Shadow to take a quick peek, and am looking forward to heading back over for a more thorough look. Blessings to you and your family.
There’s a party going on. Be sure to head on over and check out the deliciously easy recipes being cooked up . This post was added to Easy to Cook Meals blog. Please join us Cunning Ladies’ Friday Party.