The herb harvest calendar

In short

• The calendar is for lowland UK and Ireland. In the US and Canada go by your USDA zone: zones 7–9 run 2–4 weeks earlier, zones 3–5 2–4 weeks later.
• Pick by the stage of the plant, not the date: leaves before flowering, flowers freshly open, roots once the leaves die back, fruit fully ripe.
• Spring is the season of leaves and young tops, summer of flowers and flowering tops, autumn of roots and fruit, winter of planning.
• The busiest time is mid-May to late July: that is when 60–70 % of the year's stock is picked.
• Write down the date of first flowering every year; in three years you have a calendar for your own holding.

What's inside

Chapters

1. How to read the calendar
2. Rules for picking day
3. Signs in nature
4. Winter: December, January, February
5. Early spring: March and April
6. Late spring and early summer: May and June
7. High summer: July and August
8. Autumn: September, October, November
9. The year on one page
10. A harvest plan for the family
11. When the weather upsets the calendar
12. Common mistakes
13. Printable checklist

Worksheets

• Harvest calendar: garden
• Harvest calendar: wild
• My harvest calendar
• Annual stock calculator
• Harvest log through the year
• Nature diary
• Jar labels