Have you ever tried to harvest and dry lavender from the garden? One of the flowers my daughter chose for her wedding was lavender. I soon learned the high cost of purchasing dried lavender when making the table centerpieces, aisle bows, floral bouquets & boutonnieres as well as the homemade lavender lollipop guest favors.
While pulling out of our driveway to make the 9-hour trek to the wedding destination, I caught a glance of the abundant lavender blooms in our front flower bed. I got to thinking, had I the foresight to harvest and dry the lavender last summer, I could have saved a lot of money.
I am embarrassed to admit that we've had the plant for several years and not once have I harvested the flowers. Every Summer I've admired the blooms and every Fall after the flowers died off I would cut it back. Thankfully, after we returned from our daughter's wedding, the plant was still in full bloom and I decided this was going to be the year that I finally harvest the lavender!
But first I needed to figure out how and do some online research. Then I got to thinking, I wonder if any of my readers have never harvested their lavender and that's when I decided to share what I learned with all of you.
For those of you who have successfully dried lavender and have any helpful tips I may have missed, I'd be most grateful if you shared them in the comment section at the bottom of this post.
Like I mentioned at the top of this post, I made lavender infused hard candy lollipops dipped in lavender sugar for my daughter's wedding. You can find the recipe I used here at Garden Therapy.
I hope you found this post helpful and I gave you some ideas for decorating and cooking with lavender. If you have any questions about this makeover, please leave them in the comment section below or press the Contact Me button at the top of the blog to drop me an email. I love hearing from you!
Again, if you have any helpful tips I may have missed about harvesting and drying lavender, I would love it if you shared them in the comment section below.
I share my projects at these inspiring link parties.
While pulling out of our driveway to make the 9-hour trek to the wedding destination, I caught a glance of the abundant lavender blooms in our front flower bed. I got to thinking, had I the foresight to harvest and dry the lavender last summer, I could have saved a lot of money.
How To Harvest And Dry Lavender
I am embarrassed to admit that we've had the plant for several years and not once have I harvested the flowers. Every Summer I've admired the blooms and every Fall after the flowers died off I would cut it back. Thankfully, after we returned from our daughter's wedding, the plant was still in full bloom and I decided this was going to be the year that I finally harvest the lavender!
But first I needed to figure out how and do some online research. Then I got to thinking, I wonder if any of my readers have never harvested their lavender and that's when I decided to share what I learned with all of you.
For those of you who have successfully dried lavender and have any helpful tips I may have missed, I'd be most grateful if you shared them in the comment section at the bottom of this post.
What you'll need to harvest and dry fresh lavender
- Rubber bands or jute twine
- Scissors
- Paper Clips
- Large flat sheet or box
- Hangers, chain, or doweling rod
How to harvest fresh lavender
- The best time to harvest the plant is when the buds have formed but the lavender is not in full bloom. If you wait too long to harvest (like I did) the dried bunches will be less potent.
- Harvest the flowers mid-morning or evening when the sun is less intense and the plant is completely dry from any morning dew.
- Cut in bundles the size that can wrap around your hand.
- Leave about 2-inches of growth on the plant and don't go down to the woody portion of the stem.
How to dry fresh lavender
- Wrap a rubber band or jute twine tightly around each bundle.
- Open a small paper clip and use it as a hook to hang the lavender.
- Hang the bundles of lavender upside down from a coat hanger, along a chain (like I did), or doweling rod.
- Lay a flat sheet or large cardboard box underneath to catch the petals that fall off (great for sachets).
- Drying upside down helps the lavender retain its blossom shape.
- Dry the lavender in a dry and dark place. The dryness is most important to prevent mold or mildew. The darkness helps the lavender retain its color.
- Let the lavender dry between 2-4 weeks until there is no moisture left in the stems at the center of the bundle.
- Check the bundles every so often because they could shrink a little and may require tightening the elastic or string.
- If you don't have a dark and dry place to hang the bundles, cover the bunches with brown paper bags with holes cut along the sides and bottom for air to circulate. Dry them in a place with more light.
- If you live in a high-humidity zone, tie the stalks individually with about 3-inches between each stalk on a strand of string, to prevent mold or mildew from developing.
What to do with dried lavender
- Fill pitchers with dried lavender bundles for fragrant displays around the house.
- Use them in wedding bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages.
- Make small fragrant wreaths to hang on cabinet doors.
- Use them for scented drawer sachets.
- Blended with Epsom salts for relaxing baths.
- Make lavender handmade soaps.
- If they were grown organically without pesticides, use the buds for cooking like my Lavender Shortbread Cookies.
- Make fragrant Fire Starter Bundles from the cut stalks (pictured below).
Storing dried Lavender
- Store bundles in a paper bag in a dark, dry place.
- Store flower stems in a paper bag or lidded mason jar.
- For cooking, potpourri, and lavender sachets - run your finger along the stalks to remove the dried flowers and store in a box or paper bag.
Source List
Like I mentioned at the top of this post, I made lavender infused hard candy lollipops dipped in lavender sugar for my daughter's wedding. You can find the recipe I used here at Garden Therapy.
I hope you found this post helpful and I gave you some ideas for decorating and cooking with lavender. If you have any questions about this makeover, please leave them in the comment section below or press the Contact Me button at the top of the blog to drop me an email. I love hearing from you!
Again, if you have any helpful tips I may have missed about harvesting and drying lavender, I would love it if you shared them in the comment section below.
I share my projects at these inspiring link parties.
