How to Harvest & Preserve Red Raspberry Leaf Tea
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Red raspberry leaf is a delicious herb with a taste similar to green tea. See how to harvest, dehydrate, and brew raspberry leaf tea.
Red raspberry leaf tea has been used for centuries as a natural remedy for conditions involving the uterus including pregnancy, childbirth, menstruation, and menopause. See how to harvest and preserve your own raspberry leaf tea.
When I planted raspberries (Rubus idaeus) on the property back in 2010 it was for the delicious fruit. It was years later while researching natural remedies to ease my menstrual symptoms that I discovered that red raspberry leaf tea is a natural remedy for conditions involving the uterus, including menstrual support and menopause (Native American Medicinal Plants).
Red raspberry leaves have also been used as medicine for centuries for pregnancy and childbirth, astringent for skin irritations, gargle for sore throats, and for diarrhea. Raspberry leaf tea has no known side effects or drug interactions, but it can lower blood sugar and impede with the absorption of some vitamins (Healing Herbs A to Z).
It is not known precisely why Raspberry Leaf tea is so effective for uterine health. Herbalists believe that the presence of tannins and the alkaloid fragarine combined with other nutrients, including calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, and vitamin B, C, and E help tone and relax the pelvic and uterine muscles (Herbal Healing for Women).
After researching, I felt pretty confident in trying red raspberry leaf tea for my menstrual discomforts, and I had plenty of access to leaves to harvest. After drinking red raspberry tea for several months, it relieved a lot of my symptoms, including headache, cramps, and overall energy level and moodiness during that time of the month.
I wasn’t completely convinced until I casually remarked to Kevin that I thought the red raspberry leaf tea was helping. The next thing I knew, he was outside in the raspberry patch harvesting more raspberry leaves for me to use. Hmmm….
How to Harvest, Dry, and Brew Raspberry Leaf Tea
Step 1: Collect raspberry leaves before the plant blooms
Harvest mid-morning after the dew has evaporated and before it the sun is hot to preserve the oils and flavor. Wear gloves and long sleeves to protect yourself from the thorns.
Like most herb, once the plant begins to bloom, the leaves turn bitter. Select young, healthy leaves that have not been treated with chemicals or eaten by bugs, and clip them from the cane.
I grow Heritage raspberries, an everbearing variety that produces two crops each season, a light crop in July followed by a heavy crop in fall. I allow the canes to begin leafing out before pruning the raspberry patch in the spring. I cut whole canes and trim the young leaves off into a large bowl as I prune.
Step 2: Dry the raspberry leaves
You can either let the leaves dry naturally, or use a dehydrator to dry the raspberry leaves quicker. First, wash the leaves well with running water to remove dust and insects and lay them out on a kitchen towel to let some of the moisture evaporate. Then decide how you are going to dry the raspberry leaves:
Let the Raspberry Leaves Dry Naturally: Spread the leaves out on a screen and allow them to dry naturally away from dust and sunlight. Or you can gather the leaves by their stems, tie the ends, and hang them to dry. Depending on the humidity, drying usually takes 1-2 weeks.
Use a Dehydrator to Dry the Raspberry Leaves: The quickest way to dry raspberry leaves is by using a dehydrator. Spread the leaves out on the screens and dry at a low temperature. Check every 30-minutes until completely dry.
Step 3: Store dehydrated raspberry leaves
You can tell when the leaves are dry, by crushing a leaf or two. It should crumble easily. Once the leaves are dry, store leaves lightly packed in a glass jar away from direct sunlight. Try not to crush them to reserve the flavor until you are ready to brew your tea.
Step 4: Brewing raspberry leaf tea
Red raspberry leaf tea tastes like a mild green tea, but without the caffeine. To make the tea, use about 1-teaspoon of crushed, dried raspberry leaves per 8-ounce cup of boiling water. Steep for at least 5 minutes and drink like regular tea.
Want to learn how to use herbs as medicine? Check out the online courses at The Herbal Academy of New England: Introductory Herbal Course and Intermediate Herbal Course.
How to Preserve Red Raspberry Leaf Tea
Ingredients
- 1 bunch fresh raspberry leaves
- twine drying screen or food dehydrator
- 1 glass jar for storing
Instructions
- Gather young raspberry leaves.
- Wash the leaves well with running water to remove dust and insects and lay them out on a kitchen towel to let some of the moisture evaporate.
Dry the Raspberry Leaves
- You can either let the leaves dry naturally, or use a food dehydrator to dry the raspberry leaves quicker. First, Then decide how you are going to dry the raspberry leaves:
- Hang and Air Dry: Remove the lower leaves, tie the stems into small bundles, and hang upside down in a dry.
- Drying Screen: Spread the leaves out on a drying screen. Suspend the screen over two chairs so the air can circulate above and below the screen.
- Food Dehydrator: Preheat food dehydrator to 100˚F. Place the herbs in a single layer on dehydrator trays and place in the dehydrator until herbs are dry, 1 to 4 hours depending on the type of herb. Check every 30 minutes to prevent over drying.
- Once the leaves are dry, store lightly packed in a glass jar away from direct sunlight. Try not to crush them to reserve the flavor until you are ready to brew your tea.
- Store the jars in a in a cool, dark place, away from heat, humidity, and temperature fluctuations. Dried herbs will remain potent for 6 to 12 months when stored properly.
- To brew the tea, use about 1-teaspoon of crushed, dried raspberry leaves per 8-ounce cup of boiling water. Steep for at least 5 minutes and drink like regular tea.
Nutrition
Resources and Further Reading:
- Moerman, Daniel E. Native American Medicinal Plants. Portland, OR: Timber Press, 1998.
- Gladstar, Rosemary. Herbal Healing for Women. New York, NY: Touchstone, 1993.
- Stein, Diane. Healing Herbs A to Z: A Handy Reference to Healing Plants. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press, 2009.
- White, Linda B. and Steven Foster. The Herbal Drugstore. Emmaus, PA: Rodale, 2003.
- Purchase Raspberry Leaf Tea from Starwest Botanicals on Amazon.
I am not a doctor and the statements on this website have not been evaluated by the FDA. It is recommended that you consult your medical care provider or herbalist prior taking or relying upon any herbal product.
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Whether you are new to growing your own food or have been growing a vegetable garden for years, you will benefit from some planning each year. You will find everything you need to organize and plan your vegetable garden in my PDF eBook, Grow a Good Life Guide to Planning Your Vegetable Garden.
We have raspberries growing in our garden. I’ll have to give this a try when we thin our canes this year. Thanks for sharing at the Tuesday Garden Party.
This is an awesome tutorial – love all the pics! Have some raspberries that haven’t fruited yet this year,so will be trying this! Do you know if all raspberry plants can be made into tea and if they have the same benefits? I have black raspberries too. And blackberries. Thanks!
Red raspberry, Rubus idaeus is what I researched and use. It may be worth looking into other varieties to see if they share the same medicinal properties.
How very intersesting! My sister and I used to have an herbal gift shop and over the years had learned a bit about the medicinal uses of herbs. Many times Red Raspberry Leaves came across our paths. How cool to make it on your own! Pinning for sure. (found you on Marvelous Mondays)
Very helpful information! I drink a lot of green tea but I was not aware of this tea and it benefits. My sisters would love this information. Visiting from Marvelous Monday.
Great idea to make tea from the leaves, I never thought of that! We don’t have raspberry bushes any more but I would love to plant some new ones!
Great information. Thanks for sharing on Real Food Fridays. I did not know that Red Raspberry would relieve menstrual cramps. Pinned & twitted.
I’m hoping to plant raspberries sometime. I’m happy to read this information.
I use red raspberry leaf tea and it is helpful… I need to find a source for gathering my own leaves. 🙂 Thank you for the info.
I can’t wait to give this a go – most likely next year. My newly planted canes are just starting to show some new growth at the base – well, most of them anyhow.
That would be a good thing to collect when you are thinning the canes. I do that after the summer raspberries are done. I cut those out then thin the fall bearing ones. Of course my patch almost died since it was in a rain shadow. Since I’ve been watering it, it has come back well. Maybe I’ll get a chance to thin this year.