When is the best time to pick osmanthus

The flowering period of osmanthus is from September to early October, and the fruiting period is in March of the following year. The best thing to pick is the sweet-scented osmanthus during its flowering period, so pick it early every morning. The sweet-scented osmanthus picked in this way is not only fragrant but also more stylish.

How to pick osmanthus:

The flowering period of osmanthus is relatively short, only 4 to 5 days. In order to ensure product quality and yield, timely harvesting is required.

Plucking method:

The first step: break off the branches first, then pick the flowers. Pick from the outside in, from the bottom up.

Step 2: Pile the picked flowers and branches in a cool place under the shade of a tree, with a thickness within 10 cm.

The way osmanthus is picked determines the number of flowers. If the first flowers account for 20% of the whole tree, they can be picked near the flower fall stage.

Step 3: Spread plastic film under the tree to hold the flowers in order to avoid loss of flowers due to broken branches. If the number of first flowers exceeds 80%, they should be picked at the right time, and "flower shaking" is prohibited.

The blooming time of sweet-scented osmanthus is relatively short, so pay attention to the timing.

What to do with sweet-scented osmanthus after picking it

Freshly picked sweet-scented osmanthus contains a lot of tannins and will feel bitter and lack of flavor when eaten. Therefore, fresh osmanthus is generally cooked for a long time. When the astringency is reduced or even completely disappeared, it is suitable to be processed into various foods. The common method of cooking fresh osmanthus is to make it into dried osmanthus, osmanthus honey, osmanthus paste or sugar osmanthus.

Whether you want to make tea or eat it, it must be dried in the shade! Dry in the shade! The smell will disappear after drying! To make tea, dry it in the shade and rub it into powder or powder, then brew it and it will be very fragrant! If you eat it, keep it in the iron box. This is simple and easy to understand. In addition to being rich in meaning and used for ornamental purposes, osmanthus is also an excellent raw material for scenting scented tea, refining aromatic oil, and making candies and cakes. After the tea is scented with fresh osmanthus, it not only loses the lumpy taste of tea, but also has a strong aroma of osmanthus. It has a ventilating and gastric effect after drinking, and is very suitable for the elderly with weak gastric function.

Dried osmanthus: Use a large box to soak the fresh osmanthus in mineral water (half a pound of fresh osmanthus). Take out the sweet-scented osmanthus and rinse it with mineral water several times to control the moisture, and manually sort out the dead flowers, peduncles, etc. Put it in the oven to dry, take it out and let it cool. You can also use a microwave oven. Bake it twice on medium heat in the microwave. The first time is 3 minutes. After cooling, bake it a second time on medium heat and the time is 2 minutes. This kind of dried sweet-scented osmanthus has the best color, and is just right for old and tender ones.

How to make osmanthus honey: Remove the harvested osmanthus stems. This is a delicate job, so you need to be patient. Wash the flowers gently with water, let them dry and then soak them in osmanthus nectar (honey). (One pound of honey, one tael of flowers)

Osmanthus sauce is a concentrated version of osmanthus honey. The dried osmanthus is marinated with a layer of osmanthus and a layer of honey, then sealed and stored. Cover the mouth of the bottle with a layer of plastic wrap and then tighten the cap. After sealing, place the glass bottle in the refrigerator and allow about 3-5 days for fermentation to return to sweetness. You can use it anytime.

There are two ways to make sugar osmanthus. Take the fresh osmanthus in boiling water (for a few seconds), squeeze out the water with gauze after cooling, mix it with sugar in a ratio of 1:10, put it into a sealed jar, and place it Sugared osmanthus can be made in one month; the second method is to lightly pickle the fresh osmanthus with salt (just a little), then put it in a container, and then seal it with one layer of osmanthus and one layer of sugar in a ratio of 1:1 Marinate for a week and it's ready.