When is the best time to harvest wormwood? How to store it after harvest?

We are in the north, because the temperature rises late, so wormwood sprouts later than others, so we can harvest it three times a year here. The first harvest was in late April and early May, and the last harvest was before the growth of wormwood stopped in late autumn. In the south where the temperature rises early, Artemisia annua can be harvested four times a year, with the first harvest in mid-April and the last harvest in late autumn. If it is planted in the wild, due to the slow growth, the harvest time of wormwood usually begins in mid-May every year. This year is April in the lunar calendar, so it is the season to harvest wormwood in the north, and the wormwood in the south is basically harvested. Wild wormwood can be harvested in mid-April.

How to dry and preserve wormwood after harvest? Direct drying. Chopped fresh wormwood is naturally dried in the shade, and can be stored in a sealed bag after it is completely dried. It must be noted here that it cannot be dried in a cool and ventilated place, and the exposed Artemisia argyi leaves are easy to break, which is not conducive to long-term preservation. Folium Artemisiae Argyi and straw are kept separately. Folium Artemisiae Argyi and its stems have different functions. For example, Folium Artemisiae Argyi can be processed with wool, and straw can be used to boil water. Therefore, it is helpful for future use to dry and preserve Artemisia argyi leaves and Artemisia argyi leaves respectively. If mugwort leaves are stored together, the hard mugwort leaves will tear the packaging bag, so separate storage can ensure the integrity of mugwort leaves.

Rural people know more about wormwood, so during the Dragon Boat Festival, you can see that there are Artemisia annua in front of many rural houses. I also went to the mountains to harvest wormwood, and I went home to face a pile of wormwood, and I didn't know how to dry it. I had to call a Chinese medicine friend and ask him how to blow dry this fresh wormwood. Many people, like me, don't know how to dry wormwood. They should bask in the sun, dry naturally in the shadow, or communicate with you now.

Some people say that wormwood must be dried in the shade. I think you should decide according to the harvest of wormwood. If you go to the mountain to cut a bundle of wormwood, you can tie it in a small bag. It's like hanging on the lintel of the Dragon Boat Festival, and it will dry automatically after a while. However, if the wormwood is piled in a pile, it is easy to be moldy and rotten, and it is necessary to evaporate the moisture of fresh wormwood as soon as possible. It is best to dry the newly cut wormwood on the mountain first in sunny days. When the water evaporates and the stalks and leaves of wormwood begin to wither, you can pick the leaves and lay them flat in a cool and ventilated place to prevent fungi from rotting. Most of the water in Artemisia argyi leaves can't gather together when it evaporates in the shade, but it hasn't been completely dried, and it is too thick to gather, so Artemisia argyi leaves are prone to mildew.