Everything You Wanted to Know About Dill

Dill is a great herb to try your hand at if you're just starting out as it is fast-growing. It does grow better in spring and fall with the cooler weather, but is not frost resistant. It is typically known for use in dill pickles but there are a wide array of recipes using dill.

Dill is a great source of calcium, iron, and manganese, as well as acting as an antiviral and anti-inflammatory, and is a low calorie way to add flavor to your dishes. It can be used to freshen breath,   repel bugs, and may help reduce inflammation. It is often used in pickles, but pairs well with fish and chicken as well as many other dishes.

Growing dill is very easy. You can plant either in the ground or in a container. Be aware that if you let dill go to seed it can spread rapidly throughout your garden. We have both a container and a small patch of dill growing at our house. The main difference is that the plants tend to get bigger if planted in the ground vs in a container. A few benefits of container growing are that you can move your planter to prime sun spots throughout the year, contain the growth, and even continue growing dill through the winter months. Due to the strong scent given off by the leaves, dill can act as an insect repellant. Capitalize on this by places planters or spacing cilantro throughout your garden/yard. Dill is best paired next to cabbage, lettuce, cucumbers, onions, and corn for repelling pests. Dill does not pair well with tomatoes or carrots.

Dill is a full sun plant. This means 8-10 hours of sunlight a day. It will still grow with much less sun, however, your plant growth will be stunted and you may need to wait quite a bit longer to harvest. Indoors, place your planter near a sunny window or use T5 fluorescent plant lights to achieve a full sun effect. Knowing the full sun requirement, choose between ground or container planting. You will want to plant seeds ~12-15 inches apart after the last frost of the year or in the fall to allow the plant to germinate at a time of it's choosing. Water regularly, but ensure well drained soils and allow soil to completely dry between waterings.

Dill will bolt rather quickly in the heat of summer or with lack of harvesting, but by harvesting the seeds you can plant a second crop for the fall or use dill seeds in your favorite recipes. For a nearly continuous harvest, being new dill plants every 2-3 weeks. To slow bolting, harvest once 4-5 leaves are on each plant.

You can pick off the individual leaves or cut the entire stalk. There tends to be one main stalk with smaller ones splitting off. Cut these off at their bases with a sharp scissors. When trimming, be sure to leave ~1/3 plant to promote future growth. If flower buds appear, trim immediately to prevent seed production.

Once you've picked your dill, either use immediately, refrigerate for up to 3 days or dry. A few methods of drying dill can be used. Keep in mind that drying will significantly reduce flavor.

• Dehydrator - follow manufacturer instructions

• Baking at 350 until crisp
• Hang Dry - Hang dill stalks upside down until dry

• Lay flat on cookie cooling rack, turning periodically until crisp.

Store in airtight container.

To harvest dill seeds there are a few options:

• Pull or cut the entire plant. Hang dry upside down in brown paper bag. Seeds should drop on their own.
• Hand pick the seeds. Lay out to dry.
• Trim pods of seeds off the plant.

Drying seeds is critical for storage. Air dry for future planting use. Air drying, a dehydrator, or oven can be used to dry seeds that will be used for cooking. Seeds will develop mold if not allowed to dry properly.

For great recipe ideas view Thrifty Cooking posts.