Suggestions for Those With a Herb Instinct

Did you think that herbs were just for tea? On the contrary, the possibilities are endless, says Country America magazine. Herbs can be used in holiday cards, cosmetics, soap and sleep pillows.

Linda Dotson and June Centimole of Nashville, Tenn., classify as an herb as any plant with a utilitarian value, among them roses, bayberry bushes, dandelions and apple trees.

Dotson learned about them from a relative who was a landscape architect, and Centimole’s interest in potpourri led to experimenting with recipes using a few herbs planted outside her kitchen door.

Among their tips:

* Dried herbs: Air-dried herbs hung upside down from a rack will keep their original shape. Herbs can also be dried in a microwave oven. Set herbs on a paper towel, stacking them in layers if desired. Dry them in the microwave for a minute or two. The amount of time depends on how many herbs are being dried and the thickness of the stems.

For herbs that don’t dry well, snip fresh leaves and place them in an airtight bag. You can store them for up to a year in the freezer.

* Sleep pillows: Early American houses were musty, so visitors were given small pillowcases filled with herbs such as lemon verbena, geranium or rosemary to slide under their bed pillows. You make them for yourself or as gifts.

* Holiday cards: Centimole encloses packets of herbs and recipes.

* Bath sachets: To make Dotson’s bath sachet: Put one lemon rind, one orange rind, five rose petals and half a handful each of fresh thyme, rosemary needles, fresh mint in a stocking or netting square, and knot it. To use, place in hot bath water for 10 minutes.