The garden has enjoyed the extra downpours of rain during the early summer season, but the harvesting has been very difficult and I missed most of my lavender harvest.. but when you are given loads of lemons, make lemonade! So instead of dried lavender flowers this year, I will make lavender hydrosol. 

The other important crop for the Christmas /New Year harvest period is St John’s wort. I grow a small amount and usually do the main harvest in Otago. This year it was tricky to organise with the weather variability. I did go to Wanaka in late January and managed a small harvest and made a few litres of infused oil and a small amount of dried flowers. The main flowers were finished, but with the extra rain, I found some patches of flowers. Overall it was a low yield.

St John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum) is a fascinating plant classed as a noxious weed. It generally flowers in abundance from dry rocky soils. It is the aerial part of yellow flowers and buds that are harvested and from these yellow flowers comes a magnificent red oil from the active constituent hypericin. 

The best anti-viral there is among the plant world; herpes, shingles, chicken pox and viral hepatitis. Used as a medicinal oil, salve, balm or tincture. It does have some contra-indications for use, so check with your health practitioner before using internally. 

Valmai x