Herbs have been used for centuries to prevent and treat illnesses. People who are interested in living a healthier or more natural lifestyle are often drawn to the use of herbs. You can meet this need by growing quality herbs for medicinal purposes. There are hundreds of medicinal herbs from which to choose. Select a few herbs to specialize in when starting out. As you gradually learn about planting, harvesting and preparing herbs for market, you can expand your medicinal herb business. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Research the medicinal herbs that your target customers use the most. It is also helpful to choose plants that you consume regularly. Check the growing needs of these plants to see if they are compatible for your area. Narrow down your choices so that you can begin with a manageable number of herbs.
2. Create a business plan. Determine where you plan on selling the final product, as well as how you are going to prepare the medicinal herbs. You could sell fresh herbs, dried herbs or use the medicinal herbs in homemade products. Sell your medicinal herbs onine, or market them to health food stores and restaurants.
3. Prepare optimum conditions for your herbs. Pay attention to the soil, compost and organic matter when initially preparing the soil. This extra care yields a crop of herbs with more nutrients and enzymes.
4. Make your harvested medicinal herbs last longer by immediately dunking the cut herbs in cold water. Allow the moisture to evaporate before packaging.
5. Prepare dried medicinal herbs in a hot and dry area. Hang them upside down, or lay them on a tray in your dehydrator. Dried herbs can then be packaged and sold for a profit.
6. Design products using your medicinal herbs. Profitable ideas include stuffing eye pillows with soothing herbs and creating amulets or charms to wear. Herbs carry a lot of symbolism in addition to their health properties. Some examples of these symbolic pairings are; borage means courage, cardamon symbolizes peace, mint means both wisdom and virtue. Prepare a label for the product highlighting the stories and symbolism of the chosen medicinal herb.
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