The winter essential linden has doubled its price.

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As the weather gets colder, citizens suffering from colds like flu and cold are looking for solutions in herbal shops, with linden being the most preferred option. Last year, the price of linden was around 600-700 TL per kilogram, but due to the difficulty of gathering it, the price has risen to 1,500 TL.

PRICES SOARED AS NOBODY GATHERS

Herbalist Muharrem Kan from Trabzon stated that there is a high demand for linden these days. Kan said, "Currently, the demand for linden is at a breaking point, but the customers find the price of linden very expensive. The reason for its high price is that nobody is gathering it anymore. In Trabzon, almost every neighborhood has a linden tree. In the past, our grandfathers planted them in gardens for both healing and pleasant fragrance. Nowadays, nobody gathers it because it doesn't even cover a daily wage. Knowing that they can't gather even a kilogram by evening, nobody is really trying. This year, the price of linden is 1,500 TL per kilogram. Previously, it was 600-700 TL. As people living in villages gradually withdraw and come to the city, the linden in those trees is not being gathered much. I haven't heard of anyone planting linden nowadays. We only have the trees that our grandfathers planted. Gathering linden is a labor-intensive job; it's hard to gather even a kilogram by evening. Therefore, it doesn't really pay off financially. We usually sell linden in 50-gram bags for 70-75 TL. Last year, the same bag was 30-35 TL," he said.

HOW SHOULD LINDEN BE BREWED?

Kan emphasized that linden should be brewed like regular tea, stating, "In the past, linden was boiled on the stove for hours until it turned brown and then consumed. This is actually wrong. Linden should be brewed like regular tea. It should be consumed after waiting for a maximum of ten minutes. Lemon can be squeezed into linden, cloves can be added for a pleasant aroma, and a stick of cinnamon can be included to make it even more beneficial. When linden is consumed, it provides warmth and vitality to the body. Thanks to the warmth, if a person feels weak and exhausted, they feel stronger," he explained.