Herb St. John's wort: how to properly collect and dry St. John's wort at home

Rules for collecting St. John's wort

St. John's wort is a plant with a unique composition that can tone the entire body, forcing the immune system to work actively. At the same time, all parts of the plant have healing properties: stems, flowers and leaves. To achieve maximum therapeutic effect, they must be taken together. For the same reason, the grass is collected in whole branches and crushed before use.

St. John's wort grows almost everywhere, in meadows and forest edges. It is quite rare to find large thickets of St. John's wort; usually these are small strips of bushes. To collect raw materials, you need to choose places far from landfills, roads and enterprises, since grass is capable of absorbing all harmful substances.

St. John's wort has been considered a magical plant since ancient times, so it was collected on the day of Ivan Kupala, July 7, which coincided with the summer solstice.On this day, all the “magical” herbs were collected, suggesting that it was during this period that nature reaches its greatest flowering.

If you do not take into account the exact dates, then the collection of medicinal raw materials should be carried out from mid-June to August. The main condition is that the plant actively blooms.

It is strictly forbidden to damage the roots and cut raw materials from only one plant. By violating this rule, you can destroy the St. John's wort thickets in a given area.

So, let's summarize:

• St. John's wort must be collected in an ecologically clean area;
• the best collection time is June – August;
• you need to cut branches of plants with flowers and unopened buds, no more than 35 centimeters long;
• Herbs must be collected from different plants;
• You need to start drying immediately after collecting the raw materials.

Watch a video from the Fazenda channel about the beneficial properties and use of St. John's wort (common) for medicinal purposes

How to dry St. John's wort

Drying in the fresh air

It is best to dry St. John's wort naturally, without resorting to heating devices.

The grass is folded into small bunches. The bunches are fastened with a rope and hung down with flowers in dark, ventilated rooms. Attics and sheds are ideal for this. The main thing is that the grass should not be exposed to direct sunlight. Sunlight will destroy most of the healing properties of St. John's wort, and the collected herb will remain for you only a tasty drink that does not bring any benefit to the body.

Another way of drying is laid out, on paper. To do this, spread St. John's wort in one layer on clean sheets of parchment. Periodically, the branches are stirred and turned over. Under no circumstances should you use old newspapers for grass substrate, as toxic printing ink will be absorbed into the medicinal raw material.

St. John's wort can be dried in mesh bags. The collected grass is laid out in small portions in nets and hung in a dark, dry place. It is important that the drying room is protected from the weather and well ventilated.

Natural drying time takes approximately 14 – 20 days. If the weather is dry and hot, then the grass can be dried in 7 to 10 days.

Watch the video from Evgeniy Raevsky - Medicinal herbs: collection and description and drying. Linden, St. John's wort, immortelle

Drying in an electric dryer

You can also dry the herbs in an electric vegetable and fruit dryer. St. John's wort is spread on the grates in an even layer. The temperature of the unit is set at 35 - 40 degrees, not higher. If your dryer does not have a thermostat, and the standard operating temperature of the device exceeds the above values, then this method should be abandoned.

How to store dried St. John's wort herb

Well-dried St. John's wort is brittle and brittle.

Dried bunches of grass can be placed entirely in cotton bags and tied with rope. St. John's wort can also be stored in crushed form. To do this, the grass is broken into small pieces and placed in glass jars or plastic containers.

It is very important to store St. John's wort in the dark. A kitchen cabinet with a door is suitable for this. Subject to all storage conditions, the product can retain all its medicinal properties for 3 years.