In our previous post we shared with you the vegetables to harvest or buy this autumn, but maybe you haven't got veggies in your garden... If you have herbs or flowers then we have tips for these too!
At the end of the season, you’ll end up with more herbs than you can use fresh, so you’ll want to dry them to use through the winter. Here are a couple of different ways to harvest your herbs:
Dry and freeze your herbs
Tray drying is simple and easy. Wash and dry the herbs and arrange them evenly and in a single layer. Turn the leaves as needed. When fully dry, store in jars. An easy way to freeze herbs is to wash, chop and add to water in ice cube trays. When frozen, store the cubes in a bag in the freezer.
Air dry and store your herbs
Most herbs air dry quite rapidly when spread out on a screen, kitchen towel or paper towels laid over a wire rack in a cool, dry spot. Our other favourite way to dry herbs is to dry them by hanging them in bunches. Simply tie them by the stem with rope or twine and hang them in a cool, dry place.
Once the leaves are completely dry you can store them in a sealed container in a cool, dark spot. They should be used within about a year for maximum flavour.
Harvesting flower seeds
In autumn you could begin to start harvesting and sowing your favourite seeds ready for spring blooms. Collecting your own seeds is a great way to save money, harness nature and also share your favourite flowers seeds with family and friends.
After the blooms fade, seeds will form at the stem tips in capsules, pods, or husks. When the seed heads or capsules are brown and dry or pods are firm and dark, they are ready to harvest. Most seeds are dark and hard. If they are white and soft, they are not mature.
HARVESTING SEEDS TIPS
- Collect the seeds on a dry day as soon as they ripen
- Allow the seeds to fully ripen before harvesting. Don’t collect too soon as immature seeds will not germinate.
- Look for seed pods which have changed colour from green to brown.
- Cut or pick the seed heads and lay them out to dry somewhere warm. Dry them fully in the greenhouse, windowsill or airing cupboard.
- Some seed heads explode so they need to be checked every day. You can place them in a brown paper bag and wait for them to explode, or shake them.
- If the pods aren’t fully open, then wait until they have dried, then gently crush the pods/capsules to release the seeds.
- Once the seed is free, make sure you clean off the chaff to prevent the seeds from rotting.
