Herb Storage (old thread on: Shelf life)

[Guest guest]

Bump - pardon the bump, but thought I would get some ideas from the

group here!

Thanks

Geoff

 

, " G Hudson " <crudo20 wrote:

> After reading the intro to

> Bensky's formulas book and talking to some experienced practitioners,

> I've ordered a continuous feed grinder to make some easy to prepare

> 'san' or quick boil 'tang' formulas. So - how do those of you who use

> raw herbs store your herbs? I found an old thread that was quite

> interesting that I attached below. Brown paper bags are certainly

> cheaper that a couple hundred gallon glass jars.

>

>

> , Jeansu <jeansu009@> wrote:

> >

> > Hi,Karen,

> >

> > let us think this way,

> >

> > When you buy vagetables, and you keep it in the

> > plastic bag,what will happened? The fresh vagetabls

> > need to breath and water circulation if it is still

> > fresh.

> >

> > The herbs after machine dry maybe still remain some

> > water and it still breath and circular in a very mild

> > situation(as well as after amputation,some patient

> > still feel leg pain,in Qi theory,maybe invisible

> > Qi still circulate after amputaion).

> >

> > Wood drawer and paper provide fiber spece for air to

> > circulate which jars and plastic bag

> > can't,therefore,herbs can preseve in good condition

> > and the herbs still alive.

> >

> > If the herb still alive,they will need good air

> > circulate when you preserve herbs.That 's what karen

> > saw.

> >

> > Jean

> >

> Re: Shelf life, was Dr. Weil

>

> I think herb storage works differently in different conditions. I find

> jars in a dark closet to be the best where I live. I do think that air

> circulation will hurt aromatic herbs. And jars contain the insects

> reasonably, if you check so you get them before the larvae crawl out

> along the jar threads. (Hanging strips of fly paper in the herb closet

> helps with meal moths too.)

>

> However when Rosita Arvigo moved to Belize where the air is very humid,

> she had lots of trouble keeping her herbs in jars from molding. A local

> curandero suggested that she use brown paper bags and her herbs stopped

> getting moldy. Of course the climate is less variable there so she can

> get fresh herbs frequently rather than one season a year as most of us

> must do. If they lose potency and she replaces them regularly it is less

> of a problem.

>

> Perhaps conditions in Taiwan are more like those in Beliz.

>

> Karen Vaughan

> CreationsGarden@

> ***************************************

> Email advice is not a substitute for medical treatment.

> " Man is always worse than most people suspect, but also generally better

> than most people dream. " --Reinhold Niebuhr

>

> jeansu wrote:

> They keep the others in a dry,air ciraulte weel places.Some

> herbs wraped in thick paper to keep in a dry condition.

> some are smoky dry by some nature chemistry

> staff,humless to the herbs(for prevent the herb worm).

> ...

> Taiwan is on a wet weather conditions than mainland

> and US.Therefore,in ancient time,sun light dry is very

> important for the herb stores.

>

[Guest guest]

On 7/12/07, G Hudson <crudo20 wrote:

>

> .

>

>

>

Re: raw herb storage...

 

Hi Geoff,

 

Not sure if my situation is applicable to yours or not. I mostly prescribe

granulars for internal herbs, however I prefer to work with raw herbs for

external applications. I keep upwards of 60-70 raw herbs on hand,

pre-ground, which serve me well for that purpose (I use them to make

tinctures, oils, compresses, decoctions, etc.). I like the pre-ground herbs

b/c they're easier for the patient to manage. Being pre-ground, I was

concerned about oxidation and potency. Cost of storage was also an issue -

getting large amber glass jars is not so cheap not to mention take up a lot

of room to store. So, what I have found to work best for my situation is to

utilize a 4-drawer file cabinet (although currently I'm only using 2.5 of

the drawers for herb storage) and a vacu-seal unit.

 

I put the herbs into the vacu-seal packaging (making sure to label it) with

enough room left-over so that each bag can be opened/re-vac'ed/re-sealed

multiple times. Then I file each herb away in its own labeled hanging file

folder.

 

From my perspective this accomplishes two things: 1) removes (most of) the

oxygen exposure thereby reducing oxidative damage and 2) removes it from

light exposure by keeping it stored in a dark file cabinet. The temperature

of my clinic stays moderate (good insulation) so they're never exposed to

heat or temperature extremes even on the weekends when I have the thermostat

shut-off so I'm sure that helps.

 

I live in a dry climate and have been using this method for two years now

and it works well for me and how I need to use raw herbs. Herbs that

typically go rancid or start to smell don't tend to do that. Plus, I don't

have to deal with bugs and fly-paper strips, etc. I also don't tend to get

issues w/ mold - again, could be the dry climate.

 

J

 

________

Joy Keller, LAc, Dipl.OM

Board Certified in Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine

Ramona Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine Clinic

Phone: (760) 654-1040 Fax: (760) 654-4019

www.RamonaAcupuncture.com