Maybe the posters in the herbalism section can tell you. I would do a small trial run, with fresh herbs in oil. Let them sit a while and then filter. I take it you would not be making tea with the end product?

Jan

I had to look up "trichomes." For those not knowing what it is, on mint it would be the "hair" or fuzz on the plant. That said, in spring plants often show different characteristics than the rest of the season. I see more fuzz on new growth in the spring - especially if there has been a lot of cold weather. (I've seen a lot of that this spring already - my crocuses are only now blooming!)

I would expect the mint harvested now to be much the same as mint harvested at any other time in your growing season with one caveat. People often complain that herbs harvested in the spring to be weak tasting. The going opinion here is that herbs that get lots of water will be much weaker in taste than those that have experienced the stress of drier conditions.

Look up how to best to preserve mint oils in your harvested materials. I'm sure volumes have been written on it and few new techniques (if any) exist to be discovered without new scientific discoveries. I personally air dry mints on screens. They work well in teas, tinctures, etc. when dried in that manner.

FataMorgana