Harvesting Herbs

[ipaintedmyhousewhite]

In my zone, how late do you think I can harvest the following herbs? Sage, thyme, rosemary, tarragon, oregano. I just put all of them in this year, so I've been going easy on the harvesting, just a snip here and there. The sage is h-yoooge though. Would it be too mad if I snipped a little extra? I don't want to cut them to the ground or anything. Just harvest a little more to save for winter. If it's a bad idea at this point, I'll just wait until next year. It's not a big deal, but it'd be nice...

[Joan]

If any plant is huge taking a little extra won't hurt next years' growth.
I am in zone 6 and I have cut down a few plants for air drying. Other than that I can't help much

[Lavandula Girl]

Sage isn't too fiesty - how big is h-yooge? I'm still harvesting off my sage, thyme, and oregano at this point, and I'm in 6b-7. As to tarragon, I've left off the harvest at this point, but that is partly because it is in a big container (old log stump) and as such is more succeptible to early freeze. I trim my sage and oregano back pretty heavily over the course of summer harvest. The thyme not quite so much, mostly because I have SO much of it that I don't need to take much off each plant, and partly because I use some of it as a fragrant groundcover.

[bluelacedredhead]

I've harvested "fresh" sage leaves many times for Christmas dinner. Even to the point of trudging through a foot or more of snow with a flashlight at 5 am to do so...So I don't see a problem with bringing in leaves yet to dry?
Too wet this week to harvest more..HOping for a stretch of dry weather so that I might finish bringing them in...

[finnteara]

On the matter of Basil, I grow a plant for every Tomatoe, so I have about 45 Basil. As soon as the the seed heads brown out I harvest them (lots-o-lots). After I have my seeds, all the new flower/seedhead are discarded untill just before the first frost. Then in the morning early I pull every plant, but two, wash the soil off the roots and hang them in my kitchen. From these I will pick about half or more to freeze and to make pesto. When the rest are dried I pack them in the freezer till ready to use or give to friends.

[ipaintedmyhousewhite]

The plant is 21 inches high, 4 1/2 feet by a little over 3 1/2 feet. I think it's h-yooge, I guess I don 't know how it compares to the average size of a new sage.

[Lavandula Girl]

That's pretty good sized. If the plant isn't leggy (leaves only at tops of branches, and no lower) and is otherwise unplagued by problems, I'd say harvest away! As BLRH says, you can even take leaves selectively through the winter.

[ipaintedmyhousewhite]

How exciting. Thank you! I love the idea of having some things to harvest during those cold, barren months :)

(and when I say "harvest," for me that is going out and picking off a leaf or two if I need...I'm really not a big "harvester")

[Biscombe]

HI finnteara, I plan to save seeds from my mammouth basil which was fantastic this year. It's still flowering but I can't use the basil thats left on the plant which still looks ok but its as bitter as hell!! I can laugh now but I made the mistake of making a bucket load of pesto only to find it tasted awful!!! My tip ....taste the leaves before making a years supply of pesto!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[bluelacedredhead]

Great Tip Biscombe. :)
I brought my pot of basil indoors a few weeks back, and have been harvesting it slowly..Now it appears that I've been too slow to harvest. The plants themselves are dying off..

Does anyone have any idea why? Too little sunlight? Too much water in combination with too much sunlight?? Not a large enough pot? Too cool a household temperature??

I would love to be able to harvest the remaining leaves, but more importantly, I would like to know where I went wrong this year in an effort to grow great basil throughout the winter next year?!!!

[Joan]

Can't answer that Blue but my friend brought basil plant in and in no time at all it was covered with some bug infestation she said. That made me wonder how people start it inside and keep it over winter. Hope someone can help you

[Rockhound]

One thing you can do with Basil, (if you have lots of seeds) is sprout the seeds on a clean, new wet sponge. Even the tiniest Basil sprout has that whammo basil taste and smell. I throw them in salad, root and all. Save some seeds to plant next year :)