Tomatoes? Check. Cucumbers? Check. Lots of basil? Double check. And so the list goes. For the past two weeks, my days have been filled with vegetables, herbs, and flowering companion plants. I've been planning and planting a small potager for an out-of-town client, and also tending to my own vegetable garden. With the last expected frost date happily behind us here in Vermont, warm-season crops have taken up residence beside the peas, lettuce, spinach, arugula, and other cool-season vegetables already growing in our gardens. Over the past weekend, as I gently set my collection of gourmet peppers and heirloom tomatoes into the ground, my thoughts began turning to the bountiful harvests soon to come. Every year, my vegetable plot seems to grow larger, and this year is no exception. With an eye to the long winter months in the not-so-distant future, I am planting extra crops this year to can and freeze, so that I may extend my enjoyment of summertime harvests well into winter.
I grew up surrounded by agriculture. Corn, potatoes, lettuce and other crops filled the farm fields on either side of my rural childhood home, as well as our own backyard. My family grew strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries to sell at market, as well as other fruits and vegetables for our own dinner table. Homemade preserves, such as strawberry jam and apple sauce, were everyday items at my mother's table throughout the year, as were fresh, frozen, canned, dried, and pickled vegetables from the garden. Like most kids, I assumed everyone lived the way I did, and when I grew up, I was shocked by how few of my friends knew how to make a simple batch of applesauce. And although Martha Stewart made domestic living stylish again in the 90s, when I was in college, my housemate was still surprised whenever she found me in the kitchen, making jam on the kitchen stove.
With the recent economic downturn, as well as growing concerns about food quality and safety, many people have chosen to return to a simple life, growing and preserving produce in their own backyards and kitchens. While some of us were lucky enough to learn these country skills in childhood, other families are just beginning to explore gardening and need some help learning how to preserve their harvest. Putting Food By, Janet Greene's classic how-to reference book on canning, freezing, drying, root-cellaring, and other long-term food storage methods, is the go-to title of choice amongst my foodie friends these days. And although it has been around for years—originally released in 1975—this book, written by Janet Greene, Ruth Hertzberg, and Beatrice Vaughn, is as relevant now in its revised form as it was when it was first published. With practical step-by-step instructions, advice and dozens of country-style recipes, its usefulness more than makes up for the lack of glossy photos and modern glamour. Also worth checking out is Piers Warren's introductory book on the subject, How to Store Your Garden Produce. While this title is much less comprehensive than the Greene book, it would make a good choice for a beginning gardener, or even for a passionate home cook with a seasonal membership in a local CSA program. As our cultural interest in growing our own organic produce expands, old-world skills such as drying and canning food for winter use are back in demand.
I enjoy making all sorts of preserves, but my favorite homemade jam is still strawberry. Do you put food by or would you like to learn how? Applesauce, jelly, or canned tomatoes; what would you like to try your hand at first?
Michaela grew up gardening, studying plants, and picking organic produce on the family farm. When she isn't spreading compost or pruning shrubs, she can usually be found writing articles or giving seminars on all things gardening. Michaela has worked as a gardening professional for 15 years and is author of the popular blog, The Gardener’s Eden.
Your garden sounds amazingly productive Tigger Bear - no wonder the neighbors are watching and taking notes!
A CSA is Community Supported Agriculture. See more here: http://www.localharvest.org/csa/
Local consumers buy shares of a small farmer's harvest at the early part of the year, when farmers tend to need funds the most. Then, they collect seasonal produce from the farm on set days. It's becoming a very popular way to support small farms and get great produce. I grow my own vegetables, but if I didn't, I would certainly join my local CSA program.
Great question. 
M
