Collection of plants

Some species of medicinal plants are grown on agricultural plantations, but most of them - this is wild medicinal plants that grow in the mountains, forests, fields and meadows.
Collection. Medicinal plants collected in the dry. The weather is better in the morning after the dew dries and the only clean places and distant from roads with heavy traffic.
Collect medicinal plants should be only those who know them well, as there are many plants that are similar to drugs, but they do not have a curative effect, and even more may be toxic.
Harvest only those parts of plants, which have a curative effect.
Collected medicinal plants are placed in 'baskets or cloth bags, but not tightly, to avoid self-heating.
The flowers, leaves and grass. Most harvested at the beginning and during the period of full bloom, since at different times of the year the same plant can have quite different number of active therapeutic substances, and sometimes lost altogether its healing properties.
Seeds and berries. Collected during full ripeness.
Kidney. Harvested in early spring during their swelling
Cortex. Harvested in the spring before the sap flow from the branches not more than three or four years.
The roots and rhizome. Harvested in the fall (usually during the death of aerial parts) or early spring before regrowth of the aerial parts.
The roots and rhizomes should be dug, cleaned off the ground, rinse with cool water and dry of water, cut and then dried
Drying. Reverse dried herbs of medicinal substances are reduced or completely eliminated.
To dry herbs you need to quickly. Drying plant is spread thinly on shelves, or paper and air dried under cover in the shade or in a well ventilated attic under a tin roof, stirring occasionally. Plants that are drying dark, stirring a few times a day.
The faster drying occurs, the higher the quality of raw materials.
Plants containing essential oils, dried slowly, at a temperature of 30-35 ° C, as higher temperatures evaporate the essential oils.
Plants that contain glycosides, dried at a temperature of 50-60 ° C, which quickly stops the activity of enzymes that destroy glycosides.
Medicinal plants containing ascorbic acid, dried at a temperature of 80-90 ° C in order to avoid its oxidation.
Berries, seeds can be dried in the sun.
Depending on the weather, raw material should be dried to 3-7 days, and in dry, warm climate, dry faster.
Good dried roots, rhizomes, stems and veins of the leaves do not bend and break. The leaves are easy to fray at hand.
Store. Dried herbs should in boxes or crates lined paper with a mandatory label with the name of plants and year of collection.
Plants containing essential oils must be stored in glass jars with ground glass stopper in a dry, dark and clean place.