15 Common Canning Questions Answered

15 Common Canning Questions Answered

The act of canning your home-grown or store-bought food is becoming increasingly popular as people begin to realize the precariousness of our food growing and food distribution system.

Basil is a warm-season tender herb with soft stems and leaves. It's popular for many reasons. It makes the perfect partner for tomatoes, not only in the garden where its strong scent may confuse predatory insect pests but also chopped and sprinkled on thick slices of juicy tomatoes, still warm from the sun.

Popular types of Basil

Christmas Basil Height: 16-20"

This basil will add a fruity flavor to salads and drinks. It has glossy green leaves and purple flowers.

Cinnamon Basil Height 25-30"

This basil has a delightful fragrance and spicy flavor. It has dark purple stems and flowers and small glossy leaves. It's used in fresh arrangements and in fruit salads and as garnishes.

Dark Opal Basil Height 14-20"

Spicy basil in salads, in pesto and as garnishes. Purple stems, flowers, and leaves.

Holy Basil Height 12-14"

The leaves are used to make tea for boosting your immune system. Mottled green and purple leaves.

Lemon Basil Height 20-24"

Lemon basil is used in fish dishes and iced tea. Light green leaves with white flowers.

Lime Basil Height 12-16"

Lime basil is a compact basil with green leaves and white flowers. It's used with fresh fish and chicken dishes, teas and margaritas.

Purple Ruffle Basil Height 16-20"

This basil has the same flavor as Opal basil and is used for floral arrangements and garnishes.

Sweet Basil Height 14-30"

Sweet Basil is used in Italian sauces and soups and for making pesto. It's more prolific in hot sunny locations.

Sweet Tai Basil Height 12-16"

An Asian variety with a distinct spicy anise-clove flavor. Purple stems and blooms with green leaves.

Starting Basil from Seed

Seed Longevity: 5 years.
Seed Sowing Depth: Just cover.
Days to harvest: 60-90 days.
Best Soil Temp for Germination: 75-85 degrees.
Days to Germination: 5-10 days.

Spring Sowing

Sow indoors 4-6 weeks before your last frost date. Plant out after all danger of frost has passed.

Direct Sowing

Direct sow seeds straight into the garden after the danger of frost has passed.

Winter Sowing

If you haven't tried winter sowing, you're in for a treat. This method is especially good for sowing herbs. Winter sowing is basically sowing seeds in the bottom of milk jugs in the winter, setting the milk jugs outside for the winter and leaving them there until the seeds germinate in the Spring.

For our article containing detailed information about Winter Sowing, click here.

To watch our 30 minute video on how to winter sow, click here.

Growing Basil

Plant size: See list above.
Growing Soil Temperature: 75-85 degrees.
Spacing: 4-8" apart.
Container Size: 16"-18" diameter.
Soil: Well-drained, moderately rich and loose.
Watering: Light and even.
Light/Sun: Full sun 6-8 hours.

Good Companions: Pepper, tomatoes.
Bad Companions: Beans, cabbage, cucumbers.
Fertilizer:

If grown in rich soil, none. Otherwise, light fertilizer one time during the growing season.

Scissors snipping off basil cutting from plant

Basil Cuttings

Take a 4" long cutting from a stem that hasn't flowered yet. Remove the leaves from the bottom 2" and place in water on a windowsill. After the roots are 2" long, usually 2-4 weeks, pot in soil and continue to grow.

Harvesting Basil

Use fresh basil leaves any time. Basil is at its peak flavor then the buds are about to blossom.

Harvest the whole plant before frost, preferably in the morning.

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Harvesting Basil Seeds

Wait until the stem or seed pods turn brown. When the seeds are viable, they will be black in color.

Storing Basil

Fresh
Bouquet Storage

Clean and thoroughly dry the Basil. Trim the end of the stems and remove any wilted or browned leaves. Place the Basil into a Mason jar or clear glass with 1" of water like a bouquet of flowers. Leave at room temperature.

Freezing

For best results, use frozen Basil within one year.
By freezing herbs, you will lose some of the herb's texture but preserve the flavor.
Here are some suggestions for freezing:

Whole Leaf Freeze

Remove the stems. Blanch the leaves for 2 seconds, then dunk in ice water bath. Dry completely and store in freezer bags.

Ice Cube Trays

Remove the stems, clean and thoroughly dry the Basil. Puree one cup of basil with one tablespoon of olive oil. Freeze the pureed basil in ice cube trays firmly packed 3/4 full. Transfer frozen cubes into a labeled freezer bag to store.

Flat Freezer Bag

Remove stems, clean and thoroughly dry the Basil. Chop herb into 1/2" pieces, place in a labeled freezer bag. Squeeze out the air, lay flat and freeze.

Drying

Basil does not dry well.

Using Basil

Basil's rich, spicy flavor, likened to pepper with a hint of mint and cloves, works wonders in pesto, tomato sauces, salads, cheese dishes, eggs, stews, vinegars and all sorts of vegetables. You'll find basil used often in Italian and Thai foods.

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Growing your own herbs is fun, easy, more healthy than the herbs shipped to grocery stores, and what's best, saves you tons of money! Try it today.

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All About Hostas -- Hostas 101

Ultimate Guide to Growing Hostas

Hostas (plantain lilies) are hardy herbaceous perennials that grow well in Zones 3 through 8, with some that can tolerate the heat of Zone 9.

It's no surprise they continue to be one of the most popular perennials for shade gardens. Their beauty, toughness, and ease of care make them well suited for a shady or partly shady area and they will quickly become even a new gardener's favorite plant!

Why is headspace so important?

So first, what is headspace?

Headspace is the space at the top of the canning jar between the underside of the lid and the top of the food or liquid in the jar.

Growing Your Own Chives

Chives are a tender herb with soft stems and leaves. It’s one of the easiest perennial herbs to grow in Zones 3 – 9 and one of the earliest plants to appear in the spring. They produce lovely fuzzy flowers in pink and purple. They are a special treat for those first-of-the-year salads.

List of Items NOT Safe to Can

Pressure canning and water bath canning have recently become much more popular due to the increase in home food growers, so it follows that there's also a big increase in newbies or first-time canners.

Leaf mold
A free, readily-available resource!

Leaf mold (leaf compost) is quite simply decomposed leaves. It is one of the best soil amendments you can use to bring new life to your soil. It has a texture much like compost, dark brown to black, and has an earthy aroma.

Leaf mold acts mainly as a soil conditioner by improving the soil structure. It WILL NOT add nutrition to your garden plants but it will enhance the condition of your soil creating a soil that is rich in calcium and magnesium and is less prone to compaction.

Hosta with lime green foliage and dark green margins.

Why is my Hosta Growing So Slowly?

Ever wondered why your hostas are growing so slowly, or not growing at all, or are actually shrinking from year to year?

Even though hostas are naturally very hardy plants, which is one of the reasons they remain so popular for perennials gardens, their ability to put on healthy growth each year depends on several things.

Fall Care for Hosta Plants

With fresh air and fewer insects and plant diseases to worry about, Fall is a pretty great time in the garden.

But for hostas, those beautiful leaves are beginning to die back making the plant look a bit ragged, but the plant is just conserving energy and getting ready for their winter sleep where they will await warm Spring temperatures.

Cutting Back Hosta Blooms

Although hostas are basically grown for those beautiful leaves, there are some hosta varieties that have quite beautiful flowers. Removing these are not necessary for the health of the plant, so whether you choose to cut the flower spikes off or allow them to grow and flower is a matter of personal choice.

Dill is a warm-season annual herb that has feathery leaves on fronds that add a pleasant anise-like flavor to kinds of seafood, soups, salads, and sauces. Its subtle taste complements fish and shellfish. In addition to providing aromatic seeds and foliage, Dill will brighten your garden with its yellow-green flowers in the spring and fall.

Types of Dill

Bouquet is the most popular Dill grown for its fragrance of leaves and seeds. Used for both pickling and cooking.

Taller Varieties include Mammoth and Long Island and may need to be staked.

Fernleaf Dill Weed (aka the Fish Dill) is popular for its use in fish.

Starting Dill from Seed

Seed Longevity: 3 years.

Seed Dowing Depth: ¼”.

Best Soil Temp for Germination: 60-70 degrees.

Days to Germination: 7-10 days.

Spring Sowing: Direct sow after last frost.

Sow Indoors - Not recommended; does not transplant easily.

Winter Sowing

If you haven't tried winter sowing, you're in for a treat. This method is especially good for sowing herbs. Winter sowing is basically sowing seeds in the bottom of clear milk jugs in the winter, setting the milk jugs outside for the winter and leaving them there until they germinate in the Spring.

For our article containing detailed information about Winter Sowing, click here.

To watch our 30 minute video on how to winter sow, click here.

Growing Dill

Plant size: Generally grows 2-3’.

Growing Soil Temperature: 60– 70 degrees.

Spacing: 12-15”.

Container Size: 20 seeds per 18” pot.

Soil: Well-drained, moderately rich and loose.

Watering: Loves moist soil.

Light/Sun: Full sun 6-8 hours.

Fertilizer: Light to none.

Good Companions: Cabbage, onions.

Bad Companions: Carrots.

Other Care Tips

Shelter from strong winds.
It doesn’t transplant well.
Successive planting every 2-3 weeks for a continuous supply.
Attracts beneficial insects such as wasps and other predatory insects.
Attracts bees and butterflies.
Tall Dill plants may need staking.
Create a permanent Dill weed patch by allowing seeds to fall and self sow the next season.

Dill Cuttings

By placing Dill cuttings of 4-5” in length into water, the cuttings will grow roots in 3-4 weeks.

Harvesting Dill Leaves

As soon as the plant has 4-5 leaves, you can start to harvest. Pick off remaining leaves just before the flowers open or let seeds develop for harvesting. You can always pinch off leaves as needed.

Harvesting Dill Seeds

After the Dill plant flowers, allow the seed heads to dry on the plant. Cut the entire seed head when seeds are a pale brown. Thoroughly dry seeds and store in an airtight container.