How to Preserve Your Harvest

Learn how to store and preserve your favorite fruits and veggies
By: Veronica Lorson Fowler


Got tomatoes coming out of your ears? Running out of room on the countertop for all that squash? Just served green beans for the fifth night in a row? It’s time to “put up” all that bounty, as our grandmothers might say. But don’t panic—you don’t need a big country kitchen, a pressure-cooker, or even a pantry. Preserving food these days is faster and easier than ever.

Stash it

One of the easiest ways to preserve garden produce is to keep it at plain old room temperature. Onions, garlic, dried herbs, and winter squashes (such as butternut and acorn) will stay good for weeks. Just harvest, brush off any dirt, and “cure” them for a few days by spreading them out on newspaper in a cool, breezy place out of direct light.

Dry it out

Drying and dehydrating is another time-tested way to store foods. For example, you can cut herbs from the garden, gather their stems together with rubber bands, and hang them upside down in a cool, dry place (such as a closet) for a few weeks.

Apples and tomatoes can be dried in the oven. Wash them thoroughly, slice them up, and treat fruits as needed with ascorbic-acid color keeper (such as Fruit Fresh) to prevent discoloration. Spread out on multiple cookie sheets and bake in a 250°F oven for several hours, turning once or twice, until leathery. Since it’s difficult to get the produce dry enough with this method to prevent any spoilage, store in plastic bags in the freezer.

A food dehydrator is a more efficient way to dry food. It allows you to process large amounts of fruit and vegetables. A dehydrator, which starts atabout $60, dries food so well that you can keep the dehydrated produce at room temperature for several months.

The big chill

Freezing food is one of the easiest methods around. It preserves the flavor, color, and texture of foods extremely well. Deep freezers are surprisingly affordable—they start at just $150.

Freezing is ideal for most fruits and berries. No method preserves their taste and texture better. Wash thoroughly. Cut up larger fruits. Treat apples, pears, peaches, and other produce that might brown with ascorbic-acid color keeper. Freeze on cookie sheets until frozen solid. Store in plastic bags or rigid plastic containers for up to one year.

Or, go ahead and prepare some of your favorite desserts and freeze them unbaked. Fruit pies and fruit crisps freeze unbaked very well. (Some pie aficionados argue that fruit pies actually bake better this way.) Then bake as usual, still frozen, but allowing extra time. Freeze up to three months.

Soups and sauces made with homegrown produce also freeze easily. Tomato sauce, spaghetti sauce, tomato soup, vegetable soup, and squash soup freeze beautifully. Dishes containing pasta, rice, or potatoes, however, don’t freeze well. They absorb too much liquid and get mushy or mealy. Pack into rigid plastic containers and keep for up to a year.

Can you can?

Canning strikes terror in the soul of some cooks. It seems old-fashioned, difficult, and rife with the danger of food poisoning. But as long as you follow a reliable recipe and take the specified precautions, you’ll be fine.

Canning is divided into two basic methods. The easiest—boiling-water canning—requires a special canner pot or a big stockpot with a lid. Just boil filled jars for a specified period of time to sterilize the food and seal the jar. (Times vary; check canning recipes for details.) This simple method works for pickles, jams, jellies, salsas, plain tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, most fruits, and many other foods.

Pressure-cooker canning is used for foods with lower acid levels, in which more types of harmful microorganisms can thrive. The pressure canner (which starts at about $60) heats food to a hotter temperature than a boiling-water canner. Forget the horror stories you’ve heard about exploding pressure cookers—today’s pressure cookers are safer than ever. Just follow directions. Pressure cookers are required to safely process green beans and other vegetables (except most tomato recipes), most soups, and anything containing meat.

If traditional canning sounds a little daunting, start out by doing some “cheater” canning. Make refrigerator pickles, refrigerator pickled garlic, pickled hot peppers, and other pickled vegetables that don’t require heat processing. Just cut up fresh cucumbers and other fresh produce, pack in jars with a vinegar-based brine (often prepared with no cooking), and store in the fridge for at least a week or up to several weeks, depending on the recipe.

Or you can make freezer jam—just mash up fruit, sugar, and pectin. It’s softer than traditional jam, but with a delicious, fresh flavor. It will keep for up to six months in a freezer.

Other preserving methods

There are other delicious ways to preserve the bounty from your garden, too. Try preserving in alcohol. Brandied peaches or pears are wonderful topped with ice cream. Or make a fruit cordial—a combination of fruit, alcohol, and syrups. Some recipes are more about preserving the fruit to eat and some are more about creating a memorable after-dinner sipping beverage. To make brandied fruit or other fruit preserved in alcohol, simply submerge washed fruit (either whole or cut up) in brandy to which some sugar has been added. Use a plate or other clean weight to hold the fruit under the liquid. Look for recipes online, including ones that include a variety of fruits, spices, and other sweeteners. Food preserved in alcohol will last several months and often years.

You can also preserve foods in vinegar or create flavored vinegars with produce from your garden. Make herb vinegar (tarragon is a favorite) or fruit vinegar (raspberry is classic).

Oil is also a centuries-old way of preserving food, though these days food scientists recommend that it be stored in the fridge to prevent spoilage. Try dried tomatoes preserved in olive oil, or make your own garlic oil.

Few things are more satisfying than lining a shelf with neat rows ofhomemade preserves, salsas, and sauces to enjoy for months to come. Or, on a wintry day, enjoying toast topped with raspberry jam you made back in July. You’ll savor the food—and a true sense of accomplishment.

Mulch......One of my pet peeves.

That's right, it's one of my pet peeves because I see way to many people, (including contractors), just wasting their money when applying mulch to their landscape beds. That's not to say that mulch shouldn't be used around shrubbery, I believe that quality mulch is one of the best ground covers for plants. It provides cooling from the suns heat, retains moister for the plants, ads an attractive color, and gives some weed protection. Where I see the waste of money is in the weed barrier fabric that everyone seems to want to put under the mulch. This is not necessary because of the for mentioned factors. Because mulch can hold moister and with the small grains of dust and dirt that can naturally blow into the mulch; weed seeds that can also blow in with the wind will root themselves right into the mulch. The mulch will provide enough cover as to kill the weeds under it so, you do not need the weed fabric. Fabric can also stop a good amount of water from getting to the roots of your plants. Many of the available fabrics have a run-off factor, more so on hills. It also makes it very difficult to add new plants to your beds later, and can stop perennials from growing larger or expanding. Here is what I do for new beds:

Preparation of a new planting bed.

1) Outline your bed area with some form of marking system. I use field marking paint.

2) Spray inner area with Vegetation contact killer. Be careful not to go outside of your lines or over spray were you don't want to kill vegetation. Be very careful around plants in that area. Remember, Vegetation killer is just that, it will kill what it lands on. Allow area to begin dieing off; when lawn and/or weeds look to be yellow or faded, you can begin to work the bed.

3) Trench or install your edging around the border of your bed. I recommend some form of edging that goes into the ground a minimum of 4 inches to prevent the grass from growing into your bed and eliminate your trenching/trimming each year.

4) Bring in any soil you need to add to the bed. I.E. if you want to raise the bed above the ground level. Rake out to a pre-planting grade.

5) Plant your area with desired plants. Be aware that you will be adding a 3 inch or more cover of mulch to the bed later so, you may want to leave the plant/pot ball up an inch or two from your final grade of soil to allow for this mulch cover. Note: if planting a perennial bed, you should use a lighter cover of mulch as not to prohibit growth or expansion of the perennials. You may also want to plant perennials after you apply your mulch cover.

6) Adjust and rake out the final soil grade of your bed and apply your mulch cover. Note: Do not bury your plants with mulch. Many people pull the mulch right up tight to their plants and end up killing the plant. Too much mulch next to your smaller plants can suffocate them; they need air flow under them so they don't suffocate or rot off with too much water.

To prevent weeds from over running your beds, apply a weed preventer to the soil in the spring after you fluff and/or add new mulch. This will prevent up to 75% of new weeds from germinating. If you see weeds starting to grow, spray them when you see leaves forming with contact killer. This will stop all that kneeling and pulling of weeds that I know you just love to do. Two factors will stop your preventer from working well; 1-if you disturb the soil like pulling weeds or digging in the area. This breaks the weed barrier that the preventer makes. 2- if you get a week of 90 plus degree temperature it could knock out the preventer's percentage of effectiveness. You may want to apply it twice a year,(spring and end of summer), if you have a large problem with weeds in your area.

Spring Cleaning

Spring Cleaning, Backyard Style
Seven time-saving tips to get your backyard ready for summer

(ARA) - Now that the wintry weather is gone and the colorful blooms are back, it’s time to think about spring cleaning. But while you’re washing windows, scrubbing walls and dusting corners inside the house, don’t forget about rolling up those sleeves and giving the outside a once-over, too.

Spending some time in the backyard as soon as spring rolls around can really pay off. “Winter can leave a lawn in pretty tough shape,” says backyard expert Michael Miller, president of backyard tool manufacturer Hound Dog Products. “But there are lots of little things you can do to help spruce up your backyard when the weather starts to turn warmer. By digging in to cleanup in early spring, you’ll be ahead of the game, and your neighbors will be playing catch-up all year long.”

Miller offers seven tips that the professionals use to ensure a successful backyard spring cleanup effort -- and to help your home’s outside sparkle and shine as vibrantly as the inside.

* Rake. As soon as the lawn begins to wake up for the season, give it a light once-over with a rake, taking care not to disturb any new grass plants by raking too hard. In addition to clearing leaves, twigs and other debris left over from last fall, the first raking of the year also allows you to assess the extent of any winter damage to your lawn. Look for early signs of pests or disease, and nip them in the bud before they cause big problems.
* Aerate. Heavy use throughout the year can cause soil to become compacted. Removing plugs of sod in the spring -- aerating -- loosens the soil and lets water, air and fertilizer get down to the grass plant’s root structure. For smaller yards, or for concentrated trouble spots in any size yard, consider using a manual aerating tool that removes plugs from the turf. If you have a large yard, consider renting a power aerator.
* Top dress. After you aerate, spend a few minutes doing what the experts call “top dressing,” spreading a thin layer of peat moss over the lawn with a rake. The top dressing helps to gradually condition the lawn throughout the year, strengthening the grass so it can resist disease, weeds and thatch, and reducing the amount of water and fertilizer it needs.
* Weed. Go after weeds early in the season before they have a chance to go to seed. Cultivating a healthy lawn is one of the simplest ways to crowd out weeds. Or, remove dandelions and other broadleaf weeds with an easy-to-use weeder. Ergonomic tools like the Weed Hound have helped make long afternoons spent weeding nothing more than a backbreaking memory. All you do is place the tool over the weed, step lightly on the footrest, and pull the weed up, root and all.
* Fix bare spots. Whether it’s due to disease or dog urine, bare patches can make a yard look shabby. A quick and easy way of improving the look of your yard is to repair the discolored patches, especially in early spring, when the cooler temperatures help the grass grow. Just clear away the dead-looking patches, sprinkle grass seed on the newly exposed soil, add fertilizer, and keep the area moist until it sprouts.
* Remove thatch build-up. Thatch prevents sunlight, oxygen and moisture from getting to the nutrient-hungry soil below. But it’s easy to remove, especially if you do it regularly -- every year or two. Just go at the yard with a dethatching rake or power dethatcher to clean away the layer of tangled roots and stems. It takes some elbow grease, but it will help clear the way for new growth.
* Give your tools a spring tune-up. Spend a few minutes in the garage or storage shed making sure your tools are in good working condition -- before you need to use them for the first time. Consider taking your lawn mower in for an annual tune-up. The dealer can replace the oil and spark plugs, sharpen the blade, and get it ready for the season.

A little effort in early spring can lay the groundwork for a thriving, healthy backyard -- and have your neighbors turning green with envy. For more backyard tips, visit hound-dog.com
Courtesy of ARA Content