ASSINIBOIA, Sask. – For home gardeners, the refrigerator is a best friend for preserving herbs.
Gardeners can freeze the plants or let them dry on top of the fridge where the air is always warm and circulating, said herb grower Joan Barnsley. The owner of Rock Haven Industries in Assiniboia, Sask., told members of the Saskatchewan Women’s Institutes at their annual meeting June 5 how to grow and use the natural seasonings.
Barnsley said for a family’s use, three or four plants of each herb supply enough to dry or freeze for a year. But on a commercial scale, such as her business, an acre is needed.
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When she started in the early 1990s, she planted 10 acres but had to be up at 4:30 each summer morning for weeding and watering. Her children grew to hate the work, even though they were paid for it. Plus, the resulting production was too much to market. So she cut back her planting.
“We were told one acre of herbs would replace one off-farm job … (but) to get $4 per pound for herbs you have to dry it, stem it, flake it.”
Barnsley dries her herbs in a long shed and bottles them singly and in blends. She also adds them to homemade vinegars, mustards and dry soup mixes. She sells her products at farmers’ markets and craft and specialty shops, but not in local grocery stores. Chains like Safeway charge up to $30,000 to get product on shelves at prime, eye-level height.
“I’ve seen my fellow food processors go crazy” trying to fill large retail orders in several sizes and packages, she said.
“If I had to do it over again I’d start before we needed to diversify the farm and had more money, and I’d get more advice from an expert in marketing.”
Barnsley said the herb industry is secretive and unwilling to part with marketing contacts or growing and processing tips. She warned business newcomers that they will be on their own like she was.
She told the women to avoid getting into a rut by playing in the kitchen with recipes and herbs. Barnsley is a former home economics teacher and said she loved having boys in her class because they would always experiment, while girls stuck to the recipe.
She said there is a lot of drudgery with the herb business, but experimenting with new tastes and recipes adds fun.
“It’s the creativity that sparks me.”
She had this advice about specific herbs:
- Chives – When added to pickling vinegar, the purple flowers create a pretty pink, onion-flavored vinegar for salads and marinades. When adding herbs to vinegars, be sure to wash the herbs well and sink them below the liquid’s surface because any dirt clinging to the plant could cause deadly botulism.
- Dill – Strip and use the ferny foliage, not the stem. Freeze in ice cube trays and fill with water so the herb cubes can be added into wintertime soups and stews. When using fresh or frozen, use double the amount called for in dry form. Add at the end of the cooking.
- Basil – This herb flavors any tomato dish. It is fussy to grow because it won’t overwinter and it hates frost and wind. Harvest before it flowers. Good to use in making pesto for Italian dishes or to spread on bread. Grind one cup (250 mL) basil with two tablespoons (30 mL) pine nuts or one tbsp. sunflower seeds (15 mL), 1Ú3 cup (75 mL) vegetable oil, four cloves garlic and two tbsp. (30 mL) parmesan cheese. Store in the fridge.
- Tarragon – Used to flavor seafood. The French variety grows from stem cuttings and is milder than the Russian type that grows well from seed and high enough to form a shelterbelt.
- Mints – Make into teas and add flavors to desserts and lamb. There are many flavors, including chocolate and apple mints. Beromot is used to flavor Earl Grey tea. They all have square stems and spread a lot.
- Others – Lovage tastes like celery and is invasive to other plants. Burnet has a cucumber flavor. Store dried herbs in glass rather than plastic containers or bags to hold the flavor. Keep in as large a form as possible, such as the whole leaf, rather than slices.
