Canning the Treasures From Your Victory Garden
This weekend I stood in my pantry and did a quick survey of my dwindling inventory of canned vegetables and fruit and dried herbs from the last few years.
With my spending pattern being more discriminating, I already have planned my garden for this year - with better use of space, seasons, and what I enjoy the most.
Victory gardens became popular during the first and second World Wars in the backyards of homes in the US, Canada, England and Germany.
Because of rationing, victory gardens enabled families to stretch their spending power and have more to eat.
This became the foundation for the home gardening boom that has continued over the decades.
With our current economy, gardening seed sales have already increased by 20% over last year.
And you can preserve more than just the fruits, herbs and vegetables from your garden.
Most towns and cities have access to local family or commercial farms that offer pick-your-own or already harvested produce.
Remember the roadside stands from our youth? You can bet you will see more of those this year.
They are a perfect place to pick up those fruits, vegetables, and herbs that you don't grow yourself.
So, now that you are growing and harvesting, what do you do with your bounty? Canning, freezing, and drying are the most popular methods for long-term storage.
Using these methods, you will enjoy the "fruits" of your labor for months and years to come.
There is an almost endless selection of websites that give you preserving instructions, recipes, and sell the equipment and accessories for the process.
One of my favorite things is to personalize my jars and containers with specialty labels and cloth tops.
Not only does this add fun to the preserving process, but makes your jars and containers just about gift-ready for any occasion - just add a bow! Now, I'm creative but not when it comes to designing labels.
So I went on a search for the perfect (and perfectly priced) canning labels.
I searched far and wide in my area stores, only to find a very limited selection of designs and outrageous prices.
After all, why would I want to spend a lot of money, only to have my jars and containers look just like my neighbors? So I went to the Internet - and learned a lot! There are only a few canning label sites with a variety of prices and quality.
The question is: What to look for in a canning label supplier? First, Quality of Design.
Are the designs sophisticated or something your cat would have drawn? Because you will be sharing your harvest with friends and family, you want the quality of the label match the delightful edible treasure inside.
Second, Design Choices: How many different designs are offered? Are they truly distinctive, or do they look just like the designs on the other guy's site? Are they truly different or just variations on one design? You should have so many to choose from that you can have a different label for different items, or one distinctive label that is YOU.
Third, Custom Design: Does the website offer custom design labels? Sometimes, no matter how many designs are offered, none of them really get you excited.
You have an idea in mind, but like me, can't get it onto a label.
When a website offers custom design, then you can have a label designed that reflects your unique style.
Fourth, Cloth Tops: Are cloth tops (or Fancy Tops, as they are sometimes called) offered? Do ribbons and instructions come with the cloth tops? Cloth tops can add that extra special touch that turns a simple jar into a precious gift.
Fifth, Hidden Charges: When you add it all up - labels, shipping, etc.
- what are you actually paying for? Watch out for those hidden charges of expensive shipping and minimum quantities.
Last, but definitely not least, Sixth: 100% Guarantee: Does the site offer a 100% money-back guarantee? If not, don't walk but RUN away! Your lovingly preserved produce - and nowadays your budget - are too important to take chances on labels that look awful when they arrive.
Let's face it - many times what you think you see on a website is not what you get.
So only deal with a website that offers a 100% money-back guarantee.
Now you are ready to plant, nurture, preserve - and label - your garden treasures.
And nothing is more personalized than a gift basket filled with bounty from your garden.
Sharing your harvest is giving a little love to those who receive your gift basket.
With my spending pattern being more discriminating, I already have planned my garden for this year - with better use of space, seasons, and what I enjoy the most.
Victory gardens became popular during the first and second World Wars in the backyards of homes in the US, Canada, England and Germany.
Because of rationing, victory gardens enabled families to stretch their spending power and have more to eat.
This became the foundation for the home gardening boom that has continued over the decades.
With our current economy, gardening seed sales have already increased by 20% over last year.
And you can preserve more than just the fruits, herbs and vegetables from your garden.
Most towns and cities have access to local family or commercial farms that offer pick-your-own or already harvested produce.
Remember the roadside stands from our youth? You can bet you will see more of those this year.
They are a perfect place to pick up those fruits, vegetables, and herbs that you don't grow yourself.
So, now that you are growing and harvesting, what do you do with your bounty? Canning, freezing, and drying are the most popular methods for long-term storage.
Using these methods, you will enjoy the "fruits" of your labor for months and years to come.
There is an almost endless selection of websites that give you preserving instructions, recipes, and sell the equipment and accessories for the process.
One of my favorite things is to personalize my jars and containers with specialty labels and cloth tops.
Not only does this add fun to the preserving process, but makes your jars and containers just about gift-ready for any occasion - just add a bow! Now, I'm creative but not when it comes to designing labels.
So I went on a search for the perfect (and perfectly priced) canning labels.
I searched far and wide in my area stores, only to find a very limited selection of designs and outrageous prices.
After all, why would I want to spend a lot of money, only to have my jars and containers look just like my neighbors? So I went to the Internet - and learned a lot! There are only a few canning label sites with a variety of prices and quality.
The question is: What to look for in a canning label supplier? First, Quality of Design.
Are the designs sophisticated or something your cat would have drawn? Because you will be sharing your harvest with friends and family, you want the quality of the label match the delightful edible treasure inside.
Second, Design Choices: How many different designs are offered? Are they truly distinctive, or do they look just like the designs on the other guy's site? Are they truly different or just variations on one design? You should have so many to choose from that you can have a different label for different items, or one distinctive label that is YOU.
Third, Custom Design: Does the website offer custom design labels? Sometimes, no matter how many designs are offered, none of them really get you excited.
You have an idea in mind, but like me, can't get it onto a label.
When a website offers custom design, then you can have a label designed that reflects your unique style.
Fourth, Cloth Tops: Are cloth tops (or Fancy Tops, as they are sometimes called) offered? Do ribbons and instructions come with the cloth tops? Cloth tops can add that extra special touch that turns a simple jar into a precious gift.
Fifth, Hidden Charges: When you add it all up - labels, shipping, etc.
- what are you actually paying for? Watch out for those hidden charges of expensive shipping and minimum quantities.
Last, but definitely not least, Sixth: 100% Guarantee: Does the site offer a 100% money-back guarantee? If not, don't walk but RUN away! Your lovingly preserved produce - and nowadays your budget - are too important to take chances on labels that look awful when they arrive.
Let's face it - many times what you think you see on a website is not what you get.
So only deal with a website that offers a 100% money-back guarantee.
Now you are ready to plant, nurture, preserve - and label - your garden treasures.
And nothing is more personalized than a gift basket filled with bounty from your garden.
Sharing your harvest is giving a little love to those who receive your gift basket.