Canning

We never canned in Texas. Somehow, it just did not seem the "thing" to do. In Vermont, it's another story. It seems like everyone cans at least one or two things. So, five years ago, we learned how to can, starting with applesauce.

This year, we've canned blueberries in syrup, peaches in syrup, peach jam, strawberry jam, and tomatoes. I'll do some pickles for the first time today, and we're planning to do kim chi or sauerkraut. There are green beans and blueberries in the freezer, and we hope to add corn to that stash.

Still, with all that, I see what others are doing, and I know I have a long way to go. I should have winter squashes to put in the root cellar, but we'll probably have to buy beets and carrots. I DID plant onions, but it did not work out. I'll plant garlic in a few more weeks for next year, but for this year, I'll have to get it elsewhere. We have yummy cucumbers, but not the kind for pickles. I planted peppers, but only hot ones, not thinking about how useful the unloved sweet peppers are in recipes. I already mentioned my cabbage issues...

It's our first year, our first August, of a big garden, and the adage of "You reap what you sow" plays loudly in my mind. I will reap dried beans, sage, thyme, oregano, basil, tomatoes, potatoes, sunflowers, a few beets, very few carrots, tiny cabbages, a little bit of broccoli, pumpkins, butternut squash, tomatillos, crook neck squash, three kinds of hot peppers, and a few Brussels sprouts. That's not too bad for a first attempt.