Abundance
The gardens have done well this year and we’ve been canning its abundance. The produce comes from two family gardens and four friends do most of the canning. All last year and this year so far, we’ve been collecting canning jars of all sizes and shapes. As long as the jars will accept and allow the rings to be tightened down on the lids, we have used them.
Some of the jars are reused from year to year. Some are bought at yard sales and auctions. Some were purchased new. Some were donated from people who no longer are canning. They prefer to freeze their vegetables. Canning is a lot of work. Lids were dealt out like in a card game.
Tilling, planting, weeding, and tending gardens until the plants mature and actually produce is a monumental task in itself. Then there is a constant need to monitor for insects, groundhogs, deer, and other critters. Watering and fertilizing are other aspects of keeping the plants in the garden healthy and producing. This year with the help of some electronic borders, the marauding creatures were kept at bay. Special attention was needed to keep the tomatoes healthy from the tomato blight. It was an almost constant battle, although the tomato crop was adequate. Carrots and beets have been cut, canned and stored. The corn that wasn’t eaten for lunches has been shucked, cut, and canned.
The butternut squash plants and cucumbers spread out to cover one end of the garden. Plenty of pickles were canned and the squash was shared. Rows of green beans and yellow wax were picked, canned, and pickled for use later. All types of peppers populated several rows in the garden. Cubano peppers, green bell peppers, yellow Hungarian wax, hot and mild, jalapenos mild and hot, red cayenne peppers, and a new pepper was tried. It was as hot as blazes. Its name was fish pepper because of its shape and color.
The production from the garden is finally coming to a close, but sauerkraut is still fermenting and will need to be placed in jars and canned. We are waiting for the crop of pears to ripen. All of the peaches and apples are already canned. Applesauce and apple butter are in jars and stored away. The pumpkins have been peeled, pureed, cooked, and jarred for pies and cookies later.
The rush to can and preserve is slowing as the garden empties, the fruit trees become bare, and the numbers of jars and lids decrease. Soon the snow will fly and we will be thankful that the garden’s goodness will live again.