How to Dry Fresh Herbs 

Growing an herb garden can be so therapeutic and rewarding. But there seems to be more herbs than you can use in one season! If you would like to get the most out of your harvested herbs, there’s a method called air drying that allows you to save your herbs for a longer period of time to use later.

Here’s my 3 easy steps to dry your own herbs:

1. Harvest your herbs in the morning and wash your fresh cut herbs to remove any dirt, debris or dead leaves. Then lay them out on a paper towel to dry. 

2. Tie small bunches of herbs into bundles with twine, twist-ties or rubber bands (which are easier to tighten as the bunches shrink down). You can also place your tied herbs in paper bags with holes to ventilate the herbs as to prevent dust from accumulating on them.

3 Use a tree branch, clothes hanger or twine to hang the tied bundles upside down in a warm spot out of direct sunlight. Allow seven to ten days to dry completely, depending on the size of the herb bundles and humidity. When the leaves sound like crisp cornflakes when crushed, they are completely dry and ready to use!

There are so many uses for your newly dried herbs, the possibilities are endless! You can hang them in your kitchen and use them as needed, or crush them with a mortar and pestle to make your own seasonings! My personal favorite uses for my dried herbs are incorporating them in my self care practices by infusing them in homemade essential oils, soaps, sugar scrubs, bath salts and candles! 

With these tips on air drying your herbs and their many uses, you can get the most out of your plants and benefit from your harvest all year round! 

Karissa Marie

Karissa Marie is the owner of New moon studio, she is a lover of all things astro, garden, and the metaphysical. You can follow her @newmoonstudio for more of her tutorials!