To be honest, I haven't gave it too much thought. Still learning how to smoke, make sausage, dehydrate, etc. Does it make any sense financially or otherwise for a single/divorced person without a garden or canning equipment to attempt preserving food in this manner?
Why should I can?
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If you are not getting the fruit and vegetables for free probably not. The canned goods available at the super market are a better deal. Unless you look at canning the way you look at smoking meats and all the other things you do. I like the taste of my jellies, and jams, and peaches, and pickles and so on. I make a better canned pizza sauce then I can buy at the store.
If you enjoy creating your own recipes then sure go a head and can. If it is strictly a financial decision I wouldn't.
If you enjoy creating your own recipes then sure go a head and can. If it is strictly a financial decision I wouldn't.
diggingdogfarm
Master of the Pit
The best answer is, "it depends".
Depends on what exactly it is you want to can, how cheaply you can get it and whether it would be better and cheaper to store it in a freezer, etc.
I think, for a single person, unless you're canning something homegrown or unique, it makes more sense to dehydrate or store in a freezer if there's no fear of an extended power outage.
If you're a lover of pickles and the like and can get the produce free or real cheap, water bath canning is the way to go.
Just some thoughts.....
~Martin
Depends on what exactly it is you want to can, how cheaply you can get it and whether it would be better and cheaper to store it in a freezer, etc.
I think, for a single person, unless you're canning something homegrown or unique, it makes more sense to dehydrate or store in a freezer if there's no fear of an extended power outage.
If you're a lover of pickles and the like and can get the produce free or real cheap, water bath canning is the way to go.
Just some thoughts.....
~Martin
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fire in the hole
Meat Mopper
I have a couple of crab apple trees in my yard and have put up jelly. I got good garden beets given to me and I canned them. I've also canned a couple other things but can't remember what they were. I would say yes.....if you know what your doing in the kitchen and don't poison yourself. Another thing you can do, if you have a freezer, is purchase extra meat and/or veggies when on sale.....or freezable fruit in season.......and freeze for future use. For a single guy, it may not be a big $$$$ savings overall like it would be for a family.
ritamcd
Meat Mopper
Yes ... Why? there are not all the preservatives in the canning process as there are in the canned food at the market .. No added colors or flavors .. your can add as much or as little salt MOST of the time .. have tomato sauce on hand as much as you want ..
even if your single .. plant a small garden ... least you know whats going into your food .. Only stuff you like and will eat!! or get it from farmers market etc .. find meat on sale you can do soups and stews ...< with a pressure canner ..
I believe its worth it ..
even if your single .. plant a small garden ... least you know whats going into your food .. Only stuff you like and will eat!! or get it from farmers market etc .. find meat on sale you can do soups and stews ...< with a pressure canner ..
I believe its worth it ..
Thank you all, your opinion and advice is appreciated. :-) What??? "plant a small garden".... learn how to garden too? Think I'm already about to blow a fuse from all the learning I've been doing since becoming an SMF member, lol.... it's all good. I'm kind of kicking myself in the arse though, because I should already know how to do most of these skills after fifty+ orbits round that big yellow thing in the sky. Better late than never, right? Actually, was thinking of a small garden but not sure if that's going to happen, again, since I've been thinking about it for years and still no garden. Either way, I'm pretty sure that canning will be in my near future (before winter) if I'm fortunate enough and maybe, just maybe the garden will follow :-)
I imagine it depends on what kind of food is canned, but on average, about how long will canned food last? Around a year or so?
I imagine it depends on what kind of food is canned, but on average, about how long will canned food last? Around a year or so?
ritamcd
Meat Mopper
It really depends on what you can .. There was a recent test on foods that were canned over 30 years ago that tested fine and ready to eat .. I was SHOCKED !! but meats and such I would NOT let go over a year ..
Most people enjoy doing tomato's because they are a quick process and get pretty expensive here in the winter .. I don't know where you are but I have paid 2.50 a lb for tomato's
I also do taco sauce and salsa ..I also do pasta sauce
Hot peppers for hot sauce and cucumbers for pickles .. all these are a hot water bath process so you don't need any real special equipment.
I would put in even a really small garden and if you like it you can make it bigger and or if you dont like it you can always plant grass in the fall
Most of the gardeners on my website are men of your age .. most can ..
Most people enjoy doing tomato's because they are a quick process and get pretty expensive here in the winter .. I don't know where you are but I have paid 2.50 a lb for tomato's
I also do taco sauce and salsa ..I also do pasta sauce
Hot peppers for hot sauce and cucumbers for pickles .. all these are a hot water bath process so you don't need any real special equipment.
I would put in even a really small garden and if you like it you can make it bigger and or if you dont like it you can always plant grass in the fall
Most of the gardeners on my website are men of your age .. most can ..
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Or you can simply make friends with gardeners. You will have squash, tomatoes, eggplant, just magically show up on your door step!
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ritamcd
Meat Mopper
and if canning isn't your thing you can dehydrate tomato's you can even powder them for use in soups and such .. same with all the others onions garlic bell peppers hot peppers and make salsa mix's just add water
Well, I do have "friends" with gardens but, the only thing ever magically appeared on my door step was a "loaded" brown paper bag, on fire. Maybe I need new friends! Just kidding. The thought did cross my mind to ask a coworker/friend who has had gardens in the past and was recently talking about doing one this year also, if I could go in on it with him. But, that could turn out to be more of a hassle than it's worth, so I think I'd rather just plant a small garden on my little property.
Wow.... 30+ years and still good enough to eat, that's amazing, but don't think I'd be willing to try anything canned that's that old. A little while ago I was looking out to my back yard, which isn't very big at all and thought "you know, a small garden would be really nice to have back here.... fresh as it gets home-grown vegetables". I'll post some pics :-))It really depends on what you can .. There was a recent test on foods that were canned over 30 years ago that tested fine and ready to eat .. I was SHOCKED !! but meats and such I would NOT let go over a year ..
Most people enjoy doing tomato's because they are a quick process and get pretty expensive here in the winter .. I don't know where you are but I have paid 2.50 a lb for tomato's
I also do taco sauce and salsa ..I also do pasta sauce
Hot peppers for hot sauce and cucumbers for pickles .. all these are a hot water bath process so you don't need any real special equipment.
I would put in even a really small garden and if you like it you can make it bigger and or if you dont like it you can always plant grass in the fall
Most of the gardeners on my website are men of your age .. most can ..
ritamcd
Meat Mopper
Sounds good .. I live in the city and the only place that gets enough sun to plant my garden is right in front of my house next to the busy road .. Fire hydrant and all .. I call it the ghetto garden
I will gladly help you out with any questions you may have .. I would start off by chopping up the area that your intending remove as much grass as possible and cover with clear plastic till planting time to kill the rest of the grass in that area .. or you can start working composted manure into the soil to build it up ..
I will gladly help you out with any questions you may have .. I would start off by chopping up the area that your intending remove as much grass as possible and cover with clear plastic till planting time to kill the rest of the grass in that area .. or you can start working composted manure into the soil to build it up ..
ritamcd
Meat Mopper
Ohh no way in heck would I touch that if I knew it was that old .. but I wouldn't have an issue with the 2 year old salsa on my shelf
diggingdogfarm
Master of the Pit
If you're ambitious, double-digging is the way to go.
Double digging is a lot easier if you kill the grass by covering it, I prefer something that excludes light.
You can speed up the process if you weed whack the grass off at ground level.
Double-digging.......
~Martin :smile:
Double digging is a lot easier if you kill the grass by covering it, I prefer something that excludes light.
You can speed up the process if you weed whack the grass off at ground level.
Double-digging.......
~Martin :smile:
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ritamcd
Meat Mopper
Only reason I don't use a light blocking material is because it will kill off the beneficial insects and bacteria in the ground
diggingdogfarm
Master of the Pit
I haven't had that problem, the soil is still teaming with life.
I put down a layer of paper and cover it with mulch.
In my experience, the soil gets too hot covered with plastic.
~Martin :smile:
I put down a layer of paper and cover it with mulch.
In my experience, the soil gets too hot covered with plastic.
~Martin :smile:
HeHe, thats one reason we will use black plastic mulch. To help keep the insects at bay.
Rent a tiller.
Spray an area with a glyco-phosphate weed killer Big and Tuff at Tractor Supply is cheap and does a good job. A week later rent a tiller and break up the area you want to make rows in. If you want to raise the rows so you have good drainage you can either dig the area between rows or go to WallMart and buy bags of cheap topsoil and Humus. Add the topsoil and humus, maybe a bit of peat moss and either re-till or work in with a shovel like Diggy showed. Come back with a bit of garden lime (depending on where you live) and a balanced fertilizer. Rake in the amendments, return the tiller to the rental place. In a couple of days plant your seeds or transplants. In the beginning I would use a layer of newspaper and top it with pinebark mulch. Only problem was the slugs ate everything they could get to. the mulch and newspaper gave them plenty of damp cool places to hide. Now I just try to keep everything watered and hoe the weeds no less then once a week. If you have a calm day you can spray between rows with the weed killer.
Good luck I started gardening with 5 - 35 ft rows. I now have 425 row feet behind chicken wire fence and another 1250 row feet without fencing.
Rent a tiller.
Spray an area with a glyco-phosphate weed killer Big and Tuff at Tractor Supply is cheap and does a good job. A week later rent a tiller and break up the area you want to make rows in. If you want to raise the rows so you have good drainage you can either dig the area between rows or go to WallMart and buy bags of cheap topsoil and Humus. Add the topsoil and humus, maybe a bit of peat moss and either re-till or work in with a shovel like Diggy showed. Come back with a bit of garden lime (depending on where you live) and a balanced fertilizer. Rake in the amendments, return the tiller to the rental place. In a couple of days plant your seeds or transplants. In the beginning I would use a layer of newspaper and top it with pinebark mulch. Only problem was the slugs ate everything they could get to. the mulch and newspaper gave them plenty of damp cool places to hide. Now I just try to keep everything watered and hoe the weeds no less then once a week. If you have a calm day you can spray between rows with the weed killer.
Good luck I started gardening with 5 - 35 ft rows. I now have 425 row feet behind chicken wire fence and another 1250 row feet without fencing.
ritamcd
Meat Mopper
Your Mulching a lot of people use this method to keep weeds down but if you don't want a bunch of cardboard in your lawn .. Yes I said to use plastic on top of the soil to solorize the weed seeds etc .. clear plastic will kill the weed seeds but black plastic as you were saying before will kill off beni's .. Same reason you want a hot compost pile .. to kill off any weed seeds and or other seeds you don't want in your garden
ritamcd
Meat Mopper
Oh Boy .. I only use organic methods for gardening .. I wouldn't want to can anything that is no better than you would get in the store ..
The only reason I don't grow organic veges is because of the size of my garden and the fact that I can not dedicate that kind of time to the garden If used properly insecticides and glyco-phosphate fertilizers are considered safe. I can't imagine trying to grow peaches organically
Really wish I could get there but living in SE Louisiana I already have a trememdous problem with my peaches being infested with grubs.
Really wish I could get there but living in SE Louisiana I already have a trememdous problem with my peaches being infested with grubs.
diggingdogfarm
Master of the Pit
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