Storing dried herbs
 

Do mason jars efficiently prolong the life of dried herbs? I currently can't afford the ones with the locking gasket which I'm pretty sure are better. Are mason jars pretty much the next step below the other ones I mentioned?

Hello

Mason jars should work great; just keep away from direct heat or sunlight; keep tightly closed when not in use.

Lepus

What a pity Mooncat....I have three good mason jars which I don't use and have locking mechanism and seals. I would gladly give them to you! But I bet we are a thousand miles apart! lol

What is really really important is keeping damp and light out of the dried herbs. A good way to store them long term would be in Mylar bags with oxygen absorbers (easily bought on Amazon or elsewhere) Then seal the bags with either an iron or hair straighteners.
And a good trick for a pretty good vacuum seal:

Seal the Mylar with heat only up to the last half inch. Leave that open.
Get your vacuum cleaner tube and fix on a tiny plastic tube (you can get those in handwash containers etc) Clean that tube and dry it thoroughly. Then attach it to the end of the vacuum cleaner tube maybe with duct tape.
Put that in the last half inch of the Mylar bag and carefully suck out remaining air. Be careful of course not to let the dried herbs get sucked up too!
When there is an obvious vacuum (the bag collapses) quickly clamp the hair straighteners just below where the tube went in.
Be careful not to heat-seal the tube as well, so it must be quite well below it. Then pull out the tube.

Herbs sealed like that and kept in a cool dark place will keep potent for a very very long time.

Lol, your sensible generosity was received with much gratitude. I'm a little concerned about mylar, the connection with formaldehyde and Polyethylene Terephthalate (what it's made with) has me concerned. I'm thinking if mason jars keep herbs for at least 2 years that I can just use them up before they expire. With how much I use herbs they'll be gone in less than half a year lol.

You can use Pickle jars, Sauerkraut Jars ...... in that way you eat all those probiotics and do wonders for the body and get a free jar for herbs. Those already have a seal on them which lasts years if not decades. Just keep the herbs out of sunlight.

Thank you.

Mooncat was a puppet character who, as his name suggests, was a cat from the moon. Am I right ?

I store herbs in bags and then put the bags in plastic shoe boxes. They are stored in a dry area away from sunlight.

Hello there ,
 

Mason jars should work great.

hello

thanks so much

I appreciate