How to collect, dry and store mint at home?

What could be better than aromatic tea, especially from a hand-picked plant? But you need to know how to dry the mint, and then store it correctly. Then at any time of the year you can enjoy your favorite drink, which, moreover, has healing properties. Useful leaves are useful in cooking and in recipes of traditional medicine.

How to pick peppermint?

The mint harvest period is June-July. It is convenient to do this with a secateurs or a sickle or just pick off the leaves.

You need to choose only suitable plants, given the basic rules.

• If mint grows near a busy road or industrial plant, then it is not suitable for drying. It may contain hazardous substances.
• Young plants should not be cut: they have practically no aroma and so valuable medicinal qualities.
• If you plan to collect only leaves, then you need to wait for the inflorescences to set. Stems should be harvested only after flowering begins.
• Cut fresh mint in dry weather. Rain and even dew will darken the leaves when dried. To remove dust from a plant, you can water it a day before collection. Then it will have time to dry.
• If damage or signs of the disease are visible on the stems or leaves, they must be destroyed.

Fresh Peppermint Storage

Fresh mint can not be stored for a long time. But if it is used in the near future, then measures can be taken to prevent it from wilting. Best of all is to lower the slices into the water. Also, the plant will be stored in the refrigerator for 3-4 days, if the stems are wrapped in a damp towel. Or put in a plastic container, which must be covered with a towel dampened with water. That is, it is important to ensure sufficient humidity. Another option is to put it in a plastic bag and tie it tightly to prevent air from entering.

How to dry mint?

How to dry mint after harvest? To do this at home is not so difficult. First, the stems and leaves should be placed on paper towels for three to four hours. Sunlight should be avoided, otherwise beneficial properties will be lost. After a while, the plant will be ready for basic drying.

Stems are conveniently tied into loose bundles. Air must circulate freely. They are hung on pre-prepared ropes or wooden sticks. If individual leaves are subjected to the procedure, then they are laid out on paper or a piece of natural fabric. The attic, porch and even the barn are well suited. The main thing is that the humidity in the room is not excessive, and the temperature is not less than 20 and not more than 30 degrees. Then the workpiece will not begin to rot. You should choose a place in the shade, and with good ventilation. From time to time, the raw materials need to be stirred up, turned, if dark spots are found on some leaves, then they need to be removed.

Tip

If mint is dried for tea, then it is appropriate to place several types of plants together. For example, it can be currant or raspberry leaves. The drink from the resulting collection will be especially aromatic.

Do not process the plant in the oven or dryer: it will lose most of its healing properties and enchanting aroma. The same thing happens when drying in the microwave. Although if there is such a need, then it is possible. It is necessary to spread a clean cotton cloth on a plate, put peppermint and cover with another piece of cloth. Then send to the oven for no more than two minutes. The advantage of this method is speed. But at the same time, taste and smell are lost. So experienced collectors recommend drying the product naturally.Especially if the summer was not rainy: then nature itself will provide the optimum temperature and humidity at home.

After about a week, the plants will dry. Determining readiness is easy: with a light pressure, the leaves will begin to crumble and crumble. The smell will remain quite pronounced. Now the question arises: how to store mint?

Storage Features

The first way is to grind the plant into small pieces or even grind it into powder. Then put in a tightly closed container. In this form, spice takes up very little space. But a large amount of nutrients is lost, the taste becomes less bright.

So if there is a problem how to store mint, it is better to leave the raw materials whole - both the stems and leaves. The plant can be cleaned in tall jars with ground lids. It is also good to use a cotton or linen bag. Ceramic dishes that tightly close are also suitable. It is not recommended to take a plastic bag: the product may begin to shine in it. In addition, cellophane and plastic absorb essential oils, the same applies to paper and cardboard.

To store peppermint, you should choose a dark, cool place at home away from heating appliances. Usable leaves and other parts of the plant will remain for two years. Therefore, it is useful to make marks with the date of manufacture on the blanks.

Tip

In order not to throw away the mint, which is stored for too long, it can be added to the bath water.

How to store mint if you do not plan to dry it? At home, you can do this in the freezer. Quick freezing will preserve all valuable qualities. To do this, take fresh plants, rinse them with cold running water and dry them properly. Then disassemble into small bundles and wrap in aluminum foil. In this form, the product will not lose quality for a long time. But there is a drawback to this method: mint absorbs foreign odors well and gives them away. Therefore, you have to think about how it can be left in the refrigerator.

To preserve the mint for the winter, it needs to be picked on time and properly dried. It’s easy even at home. Then at any time the healing properties of this plant will be available. They will help to cope with stress, insomnia, fatigue, respiratory diseases, nausea, heartburn and other ailments. If you make an ointment for external use, then it will contribute to the healing of wounds and reduce inflammatory processes on the skin. Also, the workpiece can be used as seasoning in some dishes to give them an unusual taste.