A soothing cup of tea, with a pinch of lemon grass does lighten up and makes our mood better. Imagine having fresh, lemony aroma in your own garden. Yes, you can easily harvest lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea. Lemongrass not only adds an exotic flavor to your meals and tea, but also is very beneficial for your health. Lemongrass has antioxidant properties, which help in preventing dysfunction of cells inside your coronary arteries. It also has antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties which prevents multiple bacterial diseases, thus keeping you safe and healthy. So, lets see how to harvest lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea.

Amazingly easy tips to harvest lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea.

Though many people plant and grow lemongrass, but they are not sure when to harvest lemongrass. So, these easy tips will help you harvest lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea, and enjoy all the amazing benefits of lemongrass. Both stalks and foliage of lemon grass can be used in dishes such as teas, soups and sauces.

Right size to harvest lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea

The right size to harvest your lemongrass is when it is around a foot tall. You should cut, twist or break off a stalk which is at least a quarter inch thick. While removing the stalk, remember, the part closest to the ground is the most tender. So, remove the grass as close to ground as possible. After removing the amount of stalk, you need, clean out the outer wooden portion. You can dry the leaves to use later or you can use them in compost. The slender part of the stalk can be sliced up and used in your recipes as you require. If you have any extra lemongrass left, you can refrigerate it to use later on.

Right time to harvest lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea

If you plan to grow lemongrass as an annual plant, you need to harvest your lemongrass before frost sets in. So, you need to harvest your lemon grass in fall. Cut out the tender portion and use the rest to make compost.

Preserving your harvest of lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea

In case you harvest lemongrass, more than you need, then you can easily preserve them for your future recipes and herbal tea. You can do it in two ways. You can either freeze your lemon grass or you can dry out your lemongrass to use them later.

Refrigerating your lemongrass harvest for future use in your recipes and herbal tea –

Frozen lemongrass can be used up to 6 months from the date of their refrigeration. You can freeze your lemongrass as complete stalk or you can cut them into smaller pieces as per your preference. Do remember to put proper dates on refrigeration pack, so that you can consume it before six months.

Drying your lemongrass to enjoy it later in your recipes and herbal tea –

If you wish to use dried lemongrass in your recipes and herbal tea, you have to cut them into smaller pieces. You have to remove each leaf from the stalk to dry them up. Remember, if you wish to use dried up lemongrass, then you have to cut the stalk in to smaller pieces and remove the leaves, while the stalks are still tender. Lemongrass tends to crumble when it dries, so you need to cut them up when they are tender. To dry out the stalks and leaves, place them in paper towel and put them in direct sunlight. Once they have dried out completely, you need to store them in an appropriate jar and keep it in a cool, dry place. You can use dried lemongrass up to a year from the date of their preservation.

Growing and cultivating lemongrass for your recipes and herbal tea

To harvest your lemongrass, you need to ensure you have a healthy produce. Lemongrass usually doesn’t need much care to grow but without the right amount of care they may rot away easily. So, with only proper amount of care you can harvest lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea.

Proper growing requirements for lemongrass

To ensure you have a healthy lemongrass harvest, you need to ensure your Lemongrass is planted in proper soil. Lemongrass grows well in fertile soil. It usually prefers well drained soil, so, do not overwater your lemongrass. Lemongrass grows well in a fertilized soil rich in nitrogen. So, do ensure you use organic nitrogen rich fertilizer to support your lemongrass during the growing season.

Protecting your lemongrass from pests and diseases

To harvest lemongrass for recipes and herbal tea, you need to protect them from pests and diseases. Lemongrass is a very effective pest resistant plant owing to its natural oil content. So, you can easily enjoy your lemongrass harvest.