CULINARY HERBS 2/ 



last vestige of moisture from them and after passing- 

 through the intervening trays comes to those most 

 recently gathered. 



Unless the evaporator be fitted with some mechan- 

 ism which will permit all the trays to be lowered 

 simultaneously., the work of changing the trays may 

 seem too irksome to be warranted. But where no 

 changes of trays are made, greater care must be 

 given to the bottom trays because they will dry out 

 faster than those at the top. Indeed in such cases, 

 after the apparatus is full, it becomes almost essen- 

 tial to move the trays lower, be- 

 cause if fresh green herbs, particu- 

 larly those which are somewhat 

 wet, be placed at the bottom of the 

 series, the air will become so 

 charged with moisture from them "'"'^ sctlfie^ '"'^ 

 that the upper layers may for a 

 time actually absorb this moisture and thus take 

 longer to dry. Besides this, they will surely lose 

 some of their flavoring ingredients — the very things 

 which it is desired to save. 



No eiTort should be made to hasten the drying- 

 process by increasing the temperature, since this is 

 likely to result as just mentioned. A personal ex- 

 perience may teach the reader a lesson. I once had 

 a large amount of parsley to cure and thought to 

 expedite matters by using the oven of a gas stove. 

 Suffice it to tell that the whole quantity was ruined, 

 not a pinch was saved. In spite of the closest regu- 

 lation the heat grew too great and the flavor was 

 literally cooked out of the leaves. The delicate oil 



