Pour simmering water over dried leaves and let steep for about ten minutes, covered. Strain before drinking, optionally sweetened with honey according to folk tradition. 1 to 2 teaspoons of dried leaves per cup, 2 to 3 times daily.
Prepare a more concentrated thyme infusion, let it cool, then gargle with it several times a day. This folk practice aimed to cleanse the throat during colds. Dosage should be validated with a healthcare professional or recognized pharmacopoeia before use.
Macerate dried thyme leaves in vegetable oil for several weeks, away from light, filtering regularly. This oil was traditionally used for local friction; a professional should be consulted before any prolonged use. Dosage should be validated with a healthcare professional or recognized pharmacopoeia before use.
Thyme is easily cultivated in sunny gardens and grows wild in Mediterranean scrublands and hillsides; it can be found dried in herbal shops and specialty food stores.
Leaves are preferably harvested before flowering, in late spring or summer, in dry and sunny weather.