by Gloria Jones

Created on: May 25, 2009

Each year I plant a total of one and a half acres of vegetables. Preserving is a must for me. With the economy being in the terrible state it's in at this time, a penny saved is a penny earned. The more you can preserve, the less you need to buy at the supermarket. Not only is preserving a way to save money but you also have your own fresh picked produce and garden fresh vegetables that taste and look much better than hot house grown vegetables. You also know how sterile your containers are and that no germs or bacteria will slip by you.

Let me start by saying that I plant a large amount of vegetables considering there is only my husband and myself. But I look at it this way, one-fourth is for the wildlife and pests, one-fourth for friends, neighbors, and family, one -fourth that may not make it to maturity at all, and the last fourth is for me.

Once your plants have produced a good amout of produce, harvest it and wash it thoroughly. I think it's a personal choice as to wheather you freeze or can some items. My choice is vegetables, such as Crowder peas, lima or butterbeans, okra and corn can be frozen. These vegetables need to be blanched or boiled in water for a certain amout of time to kill all bacteria and make it safe for freezing. Once this is done, it can be cooled and put into containers or plastic freezer bags and frozen.

Other vegetables such as tomatoes, pole beans, string beans and squash can be canned. This is a task that takes some time and patience. Different vegetables take different amounts of time to process in an open bath canner or a pressure pot. I have the Ball Blue Book of canning instructions and recipes that I use to get me through the canning process every summer.

It is essential to have the right tools for canning. A few of these tools are, a funnel to get vegetables into the jars without making a mess and spilling, a jar lifter to remove jars from an open or hot bath pot, ladel, measuring cups and spoons. Always check jars, even new ones, for cracks and chips as these will not seal and your vegetables will be lost. Any jars of vegetables that do not seal after cooling can be use by refridgerating and using within twenty four hours. If after cooling and sealing and several days later, you notice a discoloration or cloudiness in a jar, disacard it and do not use the contents.

It gives me great pride to be able to preserve fresh produce from my garden and serve it to my family and friends.

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