Green beans, salsa, pasta sauce, pickles.

 Honey and garlic.

Beets, peaches, more salsa.

My winter stash!

Even a modest backyard garden can result in an overabundance of homegrown fruits and vegetables, leading to wasted food. You don't have to stuff yourself full of excess produce, give it all away or let it rot - just can it. Home canning is a great way to preserve your garden harvest. Fresher and tastier than store-bought canned goods, home-canned food saves money and reduces packaging waste, too.

Food can be preserved in glass mason jars using either hot water bath or pressure canner methods. Heating the jars kills microorganisms that cause spoilage, and as the jars cool, air pressure seals the lids tightly. When stored in a dark, cool, dry location, sealed home-canned goods have a shelf life of about one year. Canning your produce is an ideal way to maintain a more local diet year-round, rather than relying on store-bought goods outside the growing season.

 

You can preserve virtually anything you grow in your garden with home canning. Get creative and add herbs, spices and other items to your fruits and vegetables, or make salsa, sauces and soups.