| | | Greek Mountain Tea Answered by: Koidu Sulev Question from: Shane
With Greek mountain tea, are the flowering parts the ones that you cut off, dry, and use for tea? I plan on purchasing and growing a few of my own plants this year for making this tea.
Also, you mentioned in that same Q&A that herbs such as Greek mountain tea and mint are harvested when the flowers begin to appear. I would imagine this also applies to basil and other flowering herbs. What I wonder is, with things like mint and basil, are the flowering stems of any use? Can they be used the same way as the leaf is?
When preparing Plant material for teas it is a good idea to strip the leaves off the stems before drying. Discard any discoloured or damaged leaves. Spread out the leaves on a screen in a hot dark place. The leaves should be harvested before the plant starts to bloom. In case just the blooms are used they should be harvested when they are still at their peak. Only the leaves are used for basil.. The same applies for mint. Basil loses some of its flavour when dried. Using it fresh is the best, Second best is to freeze the chopped leaves in water in ice cube trays. I hope this helps you.
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