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Here's why: Earthenware (or clay pots and jars) look really nice (beautiful, actually), they do a reasonable good job of storing herbs, but their expense can be pretty daunting for an herb collection. Not to mention they don't stack well, are breakable and would take up a lot of room as your herb collection grows. Have you ever put clay on your skin and felt how it draws out the moisture and oils? Even the best fired earthenware will still do this. In addition, as time moves on your container will begin to smell like the herb and those oils will transfer from herb to herb as you use them (Garlic tasting mint tea? I think not.). And then there's the question of exactly what kind of clay was used - is it leaching things into my herbs that I don't want? A friend of mine would not give up her earthenware - it was the aesthetic answer for her herb storage (and I must add it was one of the most beautiful storage systems I've ever seen). But I had to laugh when she made mint tea and pulled a little plastic bag out of her clay pot. It looked good, but it wasn't a good herbal storage answer. You see beautiful glass containers storing herbs all over the place. I love the beauty of dried herbs and the look of the ornate glass jars. It makes me think of the old Apothecaries and their classic, beautiful charm. But as with earthenware, they are expensive, they don't stack well and glass breaks. They also don't breath (trapping any latent moisture - causing spoilage) and they need to be stored where there is NO sun light - as glass magnifies light. My first herbal storage venture was glass - I admit I was going for aesthetics. Inside of 2 months I had lost all the herbs I was storing. Some of them molded (I denied that it could be the glass container and blamed the herb for not being dried enough). As I was throwing away the last of my stock I noticed that the herb, closest to the glass, had also faded from light exposure - and no, my glass jars did not get any direct sun light at any time. This was when I put a lot of effort into studying what the BEST herb storage answer might be. It was important that my My herb storage goals were: 1) A long time herb storage answer - shelf life. 2) Cost effective and space efficient. 3) I needed to expand my collection of contains a few at a time. 4) And yeah, my herbal storage had to look nice. I was introduced to the benefits of plastic, for storing herbs, at a Tupperware party. The only thing this plastic didn't solve was the cost effective part. The discount shops provided a lot of interesting solutions but I didn't know if I'd be able to keep buying - the same containers - months down the road. This was the same time that the plastic bag companies started marketing cheap food storage containers. I looked at many brands but (for me) Glad ware had the size and shape answer I wanted (depending on your needs another brand may suit you just fine). The Solution for Storing Herbs Use this link for a detailed view of Storing Herbs using this system. (Remember to pick the size and shape, for your herbal storage, that makes the best sense for your personal needs. There are a lot of brands, sizes, shapes and colors to pick from - have fun with it.) My choice for storing herbs was two sizes of Glad ware containers - their Soup & Salad rectangle (3 cups / 24 oz.) and their Deep Dish rectangle (8 cups / 64 oz.) with a label on the outside of the container telling me what was inside. The large (8 cups / 64 oz.) container was my long term solution for storing herbs and inside each container I divided the herb into smaller plastic bags so I could pull out usable amounts as I needed it - without exposing all the herb to the air (or any moisture the air might be carrying). I dated these bags so, as more fresh dried herb came in, I could store it to the back of the container always rotating my stock. The smaller (3 cups / 24 oz.) container was a perfect size for storing herbs that I would use for teas and spices, and for smaller quantities at my crafting station (where I make oils, creams, soap and other herbal crafts). They look nice, stack beautifully, don't break when I drop them, are cost effective and give me a delightful shelf life of 1+ to 2+ years (but most of my herb doesn't last that long). FUNNY: Many years ago one of my daughters (then 4 years old) came to me upset because the kitten was constantly messing with her doll stuff. I told her we would organize into containers to keep the cat away and that I'd help her in a little while. Minutes later she came down and carried a container up to her room. I was impressed that she was going to start without me. A few moments after that she came down excited that she had solved the problem! I was ready to praise her and went up to inspect her wonderful work. Sure enough - stuffed into the container was the kitten - perfectly stored - and away from her doll stuff. The kitten was a little upset, but unharmed.
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All information, shared on this web site, is for enjoyment and study only and is NOT meant to diagnose or treat any medical condition. Only your health care professional is qualified to diagnose or treat medical conditions. Do not risk your health! Just because something is 'natural' does NOT make it safe. Do not, under any circumstance, ingest or use herbs in any form without consulting your Doctor. If you do, you do so at your OWN RISK. |
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