Drying Herbs etc.

To use your herbs longer, you need to dry them.
The best way is is to tie them in bunches & to hang them for about 2 weeks!
Make sure there is a good air circulation in your drying area.
A dark room is better to keep color to drying herbs, like lavender..
There are several other ways to dry herbs, among them oven or
microwave, but I think that herbs need time to dry well.

The best dried herbs come from the flavorful
leaves of the upper 6 inches of the stems.
Cut herbs in the morning after the dew has dried off.
It is better to cut herbs when they have just started to bloom.

Once your herbs are dry, you can use them for craft, decoration.
Dried medicinal herbs can be finely crushed & put into capsules.
Added to vinegar, herbs can make a fresh smelling cleanser.
Dried herbs should be stocked in an air tight container.

Lavender wands

13 long stemmed fresh lavenders
About 1 yard satin ribbon.

Bundle the stems after removing the leaves.
Line up the lower blossoms & tightly tie a string.
Bend the stems over the blossoms to form a cage
around them & secure with a rubber band
From the top weave the ribbon in & out of the stems
in a descending spirale, forming a woven basken
around the flowers. Tie tightly at the bottom,
trim stems & add a bow.
These wands can be placed in drawers.. etc.
This is the way it is done in Provence...
The cage is called the bottle.

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