Harvesting savory - how to go about it

When do you harvest savory?

You can harvest savory most of the year, provided you have the hardy mountain savory in your garden. The harvest begins shortly after the sprouting in spring and only ends with increasing frost. The young shoots are still quite mild in taste at the beginning of the harvest, but that can be quite appealing.

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You can also harvest summer savory when the young shoots are about 8 to 10 cm long. However, this annual herb must be sown or replanted every year. By the time the seeds come up, you will have already started harvesting mountain savory. The taste of summer savory is much milder than that of mountain savory. So it makes perfect sense to plant both variants.

How do you harvest savory?

Even if the savory doesn't have the same intense flavor all year round, you can harvest it anytime if there are fresh shoots. Cut these off as needed.

You can tie the stems into small bouquets and cook them with stews or vegetable dishes. This makes it easy to remove the herb after cooking. If the savory is to stay in the dish after cooking, only use the softer leaves. The stems of mountain savory in particular are relatively firm.

The use of savory

As the name suggests, savory is often used in all kinds of bean dishes and is said to make legumes easier to digest. But it also tastes good with other vegetables and its slightly peppery aroma goes well with fish dishes. You can use the herb fresh or dried. In folk medicine, savory is used for coughs and various gastric and intestinal complaints.