Drying ALOT of ribwort plantain....suggestions?

Hi!:wave:

Ive just foraged ALOT of ribwort plantain and now cant work out how to dry it all before it gets mouldy...

Last year - it went off.

So...Ive just put some on trays in my airing cupboard - but in the past they took a while to dry out as they are such juicy leaves...so this wont work for the amount I have.

Leaving it in carboard boxes in the shed..unless I can layer alot - so they are not touching and have air circulation...wont it get mouldy?
Last week I picked hawthorn and the branches which were abit wet went mouldy in the shed...and the plantain Ive got is quite wetish.

I find the damp air at this time of year doesnt help.:?

I could try hang in it in bunches from the roof.....I tried this with parsley a year ago...the outside bits were ok - but the inside bits didnt dry and went off too..and the bunches were small...it might be hard to tie bunches of leaves when they dont all have stalks.

so stuck...I really want to be able to use what ive got so need to dry it and then when dry i can store it in the loft.

Hopeing someone has great advice for ALOT of plantain :wave:

also OH is worried about bugs in the house:roll::lol::?

I lay out stuff in old mushroom trays as they are perforated all over. Using the poly tunnel at present but inside house is better

parsnipbun said:

I lay out stuff in old mushroom trays as they are perforated all over. Using the poly tunnel at present but inside house is better

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oooh brilliant - I was hoping youd answer!

I could stack them in my loft then maybe:?

Do you fin that you have to not let the leaves overlap?

Do you mean the plastic ones that stack?

That's them. Don't put too much in each one. Just cover the bottom with a couple of layers and keep it where you can rotate it every day. Just ruffle through it with hands until its all dry evenly. Then you can more in crate for storage

I let leaves overlap a lot. Important thing is to keep just rotating it and moving all leaves around
So all dry evenly

parsnipbun said:

That's them. Don't put too much in each one. Just cover the bottom with a couple of layers and keep it where you can rotate it every day. Just ruffle through it with hands until its all dry evenly. Then you can more in crate for storage

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thanks hun....very helpful...Im now going to start harvesting crates! lol! Might have to put them in the loft - will the darkness be a problem?

ok - i started the process... Ive been trying to dry 2 large bags of ribwort plantain....i spread it all over the patio to enable any bugs to run away -and to dry it abit.

Then picked it all up lookiong for any slugs...and have now got:

box & tray in the airing cuboard, box & basket in the loft,
2 draws emptied in the spare room...so OH wont see - sneaky! lol! and some other boxes dotted about thehouse in unobvious places...Im hoping I dont bug my house out - the tiny bugs you dont see

Ive got another 2 whole tesco bags in my boot...but have no where to spread it out - the shed is not working to dry any more....the hawthorn i put there the other day has gone brown
So - def wont work with juice plantain. OH says when he gets bitten by a bug - he wont be pleased & al I will be able to say is sorry!(

Ive had to overlap quite abit but will just try be good at rotating them every day.....lets hope they dont all go off

also - there is still LOADSi could harvets too...but how to dry it all...just impossiable -

Could I put them in the tumble dryer??????

haa hahaaaa...just a htought - but maybe -anyone tried?

You can put it in the oven on the lowest heat and leave it for a few hours. I used to do this with grass, it stinks but it does work!

aliduncan1 said:

You can put it in the oven on the lowest heat and leave it for a few hours. I used to do this with grass, it stinks but it does work!

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it gives a different texture to slow drying (much more brittle) but as you say it does work:wave:

parsnipbun said:

it gives a different texture to slow drying (much more brittle) but as you say it does work:wave:

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Was thinking it is better than seeing it go to waste!

yeah - i thought about the oven...but OH was not keen on the expense...and i gather not the smell either...I remember when I made bunny biscuits! The cooked hay smell!:lol:

I was hoping the tumble dryer - which I never use and is really old..might do a quick job! lol!

chelle said:

ok - i started the process... Ive been trying to dry 2 large bags of ribwort plantain....i spread it all over the patio to enable any bugs to run away -and to dry it abit.

Then picked it all up lookiong for any slugs...and have now got:

box & tray in the airing cuboard, box & basket in the loft,
2 draws emptied in the spare room...so OH wont see - sneaky! lol! and some other boxes dotted about thehouse in unobvious places...Im hoping I dont bug my house out - the tiny bugs you dont see

Ive got another 2 whole tesco bags in my boot...but have no where to spread it out - the shed is not working to dry any more....the hawthorn i put there the other day has gone brown
So - def wont work with juice plantain. OH says when he gets bitten by a bug - he wont be pleased & al I will be able to say is sorry!(

Ive had to overlap quite abit but will just try be good at rotating them every day.....lets hope they dont all go off

also - there is still LOADSi could harvets too...but how to dry it all...just impossiable -

Could I put them in the tumble dryer??????

haa hahaaaa...just a htought - but maybe -anyone tried?:p

Click to expand...

Yep tumble drier's my regular way. 3 days out on the carpeted floor until leathery then finish in the tumble drier.
Ribwort goes like black corkscrews but greater P. often needs a bit longer or it sort of braises itself.
Suggest put the ribwort in small quantities in a clean pillow case cos it tries to go through the holes of the drum.
Also know where the filter is on your machine!

I used the tumble dryer, I used a old duvet shhet and filled with plantian! (I also used the bath to wash big quantities of plantian )http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...full-of-plantian-O...&highlight=Bath+plantain

beccimarie said:

I used the tumble dryer, I used a old duvet shhet and filled with plantian! (I also used the bath to wash big quantities of plantian )http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...full-of-plantian-O...&highlight=Bath+plantain

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:thumb: Better way of doing it!:thumb:

Chelle can I just reassure you, in all my years of foraging I've never brought in biting bugs! Very occasionally there's a tiny tiny snail or slug, only 1/8" big.

EG long term storage. Clean fruit & veg boxes from Tescoes fit nicely under the bed, & eventually stack well. I just make a few more holes in the side with a skewer for ventilation. I need so much, they tuck away nicely in a gap between my wardrobe & the wall & I can build them up to ceiling height with good boxes!

thanks guys! yeah - im not mad thinking i can tumble dry plants!:lol:

Ive microwaves some - worked really well - went brittle and stayed a lovely green colour too...but would cost and take forever to do loads!:lol: Bless my Mums taken a load to drape about her house!