What to do with a massive rosemary bush...

[bitShifter_]

Hello everyone,

I have a really big rosemary bush on my plot which seems to be doing really well. It is flowering though and some of the older branches the little leaves are going a bit yellow.

The rosemary tastes great and I use it now and then but can't really keep up with how much there is. I think it would be a shame to let it go to waste. What are the best ways of storing or using large amounts of it - save giving it away to friends (they are all starting to get sick of it now :P).

[crannman]

use the thicker stems as skewers for chicken or lamb ad to olive oil to give flavour

[Kleftiwallah]

Try a recipe for rosemary jelly, great on lamb and mutton.

Rosemary Jelly | BBC Good Food

Cheers, Tony.

[Zelenina]

I love those big old rosemary bushes. I noticed them all over the place the last time I was in Suffolk, and I couldn't resist taking a sniff of each one, or picking a small sprig to keep in my pocket.

The traditional way of storage is by drying and then keeping it in airtight jars. But apparently it can also be frozen in freezer bags.

You could use the young green shoots as cuttings to make lots of new little plants. They can be rooted in pots of compost or in water. Then you can give away or sell the plants, or make a rosemary hedge with them. Or you could leave the plant as it is, just harvesting when you need some, and let the bees enjoy the flowers.

[mothhawk]

When I have to prune mine back, I hang the cut branches up to dry, and when the leaves are thoroughly dry, I strip them off the stems (a lot will just fall off if they are properly dry) and grind them to a powder in the coffee grinder. Store in airtight jars and then use a pinch or two to add flavour to soups and stews and gravies.

[bitShifter_]

Thanks for the tips everyone. I don't eat meat so some of them I couldn't do. I really like the idea of taking cuttings to make new plants to give away to folk or sell.

I feel like I couldn't really do the thing of leaving them hanging to dry as I'd be worried about flies and stuff going on them, and presumably you can't give it a rinse once it's dried in this way lol. I really like the idea of doing this otherwise though. Maybe I'm being a bit too hygiene conscious?

[Scarlet]

You can put it in a clean, dry pillow case to dry. That will keep flies, dust etc off?

[bitShifter_]

Great! That's what I'll do. Thanks I'm looking forward to doing this now

[ancee]

You could still use the stems as skewers and thread mushrooms, peppers, courgettes, onions on them to b&q them, also halloumi if you're not vegan