Drying Herbs

As the holidays approach, this is the perfect time to replenish the spice cabinet with some dried, homegrown herbs. I cut some of the perennials way back towards the end of summer and they have been patiently hanging on our covered porch to dry for a few weeks now. Things like sage, rosemary, thyme, chives, oregano, etc go fast at our house in the winter with all the big pots of stews and roasts we cook up. The old containers, which were running light anyways, are getting stuffed full of the freshly dried goodies.

I cut several springs of my chamomile plant while the flowers were in bloom. I have never made herbal teas on my own, but chamomile seems fairly simple – just seep the dried flowers. If nothing else, it looks pretty on our shelf. Hopefully though my mind will be blown with homegrown herbal tea and maybe I’ll get even more into it next year.

It’s been a little quiet from my blog lately for a few reasons. Mostly, this time of year I prefer to hole up and forget about the garden for a couple months – even though there are still several things on my to-do list, along with a complete recap on my potato experiment. I’ve also spent half of this month away from home traveling. And I think it’s safe to say the other half has been spent having big conversations with Jay about what I want to be when I grow up. More on that as it unfolds…

I miss my readers and I will back to regular blogging soon! And even though I am ready for a garden callus break, at the same time I am also foaming at the mouth for those seed catalogs that will keep we warm with amibition all winter!