How to Harvest and Store Your Home-Grown Herbs

Get the most from your herbs

Harvesting your herbs correctly keeps the plants productive and your kitchen stocked with flavour. And with the right storage, you can enjoy your harvest long after picking. Here’s how.

Harvest at the right time

Pick herbs in the morning, after the dew dries but before the midday heat — that’s when their flavour and aromatic oils are strongest. Regular picking also keeps plants bushy.

Harvest the right way

Snip leaves and stems from the top with clean scissors, encouraging bushier growth. Don’t strip a plant bare — take a little at a time so it keeps producing. For leafy herbs like coriander, cut the outer growth first.

Don’t let herbs flower (mostly)

For leafy herbs, pinch off flower buds as they appear — once a herb flowers (bolts), leaf flavour drops and growth slows. (If you want to save seed, let a few plants flower at the end.)

Using herbs fresh

Fresh herbs are best used soon after picking. Keep them in the fridge wrapped in a damp cloth, or stand stems in a glass of water like a little bouquet to last a few days.

Drying herbs

To store longer, dry herbs by hanging small bunches in an airy, shaded spot, or spreading leaves to dry. Once fully dry and crumbly, store in airtight jars away from light and heat.

Freezing herbs

Many herbs freeze well — chop them and freeze in ice-cube trays with a little water or oil, ready to drop straight into cooking. Great for mint, coriander, and basil.

Label and date your stores

Label dried and frozen herbs with the name and date, and use them within a reasonable time for the best flavour. Then sow a fresh batch and keep the cycle going.

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