Herbal and Orchard Garland
I call this my Herbal and Orchard Garland. It seamlessly weaves together my love for gardening, herbalism, and home décor. The herbs I used were grown from seed in my greenhouse and garden and have been added to the garland fresh alongside dried fruit from our small orchard. This easy-to-make garland is multifunctional and can be used year-round to decorate your mantle, window frames, banisters, chicken coops and barn doors. It can also be added to a fresh evergreen holiday wreath or strung on your Christmas tree! It will provide several weeks of a lovely inviting fragrance, and the herb bundles can be easily untied from the twine to season your favorite savory dishes and drinks. While they hang, they naturally dry and can be preserved and used for the next 12-18 months. Not to mention, dried herbs make beautiful heartfelt gifts and gift giving season is just around the corner.
This tutorial has been featured in the spring 2022 edition of The FarmMade Essential Skills Book available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Tractor Supply, among other online and brick and mortar retailers.
This tutorial has been featured in the spring 2022 edition of The FarmMade Essential Skills Book available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Tractor Supply, among other online and brick and mortar retailers.
You Will Need
- Your favorite culinary or medicinal herbs (I prefer sage, lemon thyme, eucalyptus and rosemary)
- Various fruit that grows on your homestead (I used pear, apple and orange for this tutorial)
- jute twine
- scissors (Barebones snips and shears are the best!)
- sharp knife
- oven
- parchment paper
- cookie sheet
- wooden skewer to create small hole in the fruit slices
To Make
- Collect your favorite fragrant herbs and fruit.
- Slice fruit less than ¼ inch thick. The slices will be various sizes which add character to the garland.
- Line the fruit on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake at 200 degrees F for two hours (or until the fruit is completely dried through.) The thicker pieces can take an additional hour to completely dry through, so keep that in mind when planning this craft.
- While the fruit is drying, measure the space(s) where you want to hang your garland and cut the twine to that length plus 2’, so the garland can hang down about a foot on each side. Add a couple additional feet if you want the garland to drape throughout. I have found that 7’ long garland strips are a good length for hanging in various spaces around my home.
- Cut several 9” pieces of twine that will be used to attach your herbs and fruit to the primary twine. Cut more if you like your garland to be full and heavy with herbs. Cut less if you like the garland to have a more subtle, simplistic look.
- Tie your herbs to your long piece of twine, spacing them out equally as shown. Tie the herbs tightly, as they will shrink as they dry.
- When the fruit is completely dried, poke a hole in it toward the top and attach them using the small pieces of twine, filling the spaces between the herbs. The herb bundles will slide back and forth with a gentle pull so you can reposition them as you incorporate the fruit.
- Add additional items that fit your personal style and home décor. Some ideas include evergreen branch clippings pieces, cinnamon sticks, fresh cranberries for a pop of color, jingle bells to ring in the holiday season, or simple natural wooden beads.
If you enjoy working with herbs, I invite you to join me on my herbal journey to expand your knowledge of how plants can nourish, soothe, and support. The Herbal Academy has a wide range of top-ranked herbal courses, workshops, resources, workbooks, journals, and so much more.
Disclaimer: This article may contain affiliate links. Cedar House Living LLC receives a small commission for sales generated through these links at no additional cost to you. I use the commissions to further expand my garden, floral, and herbal knowledge so I can continue to share what I learn with you.