Canning and Gardening

This is the first year that I have completed a small garden since we have been married. In the past, Charli Beth and I have planted a few small items but it really never produced much. I'm not a green thumb type of lady, but I have always wished to be. 

Since my MIL is the gardening extraordinaire I asked that she teach me the tricks and trades of how to have a successful garden. She has a large garden that we all are able to eat from so in our plant selections I tried to pick items that she did not have. 

Charli loves to garden. (Love is probably an understatement in that sentence.) She helped me pick broccoli, okra, cherry tomatoes, sweet potatoes and strawberries. 

So far I have made two batches of strawberry freezer jam, cherry preserves and froze many more items. My MIL took Charli cherry picking one day and then I asked to go back the next time. We were loaded down with cherries for days. It was actually a lot of fun learning the process. Now I gladly have several bats prepared for cobblers for the next year. 

We have started freezing our broccoli and squash because it's coming in bulk and how often can one truly eat broccoli? My kids thankfully LOVE it but it will be great to have it during the winter months too. We will officially grow broccoli forever. 

There are a few items that we are still buying from the Amish. Blueberries are WAY cheaper there and already picked. The crazy little bunnies in our yard have are my sweet potato vines so I've been purchasing them from the Habegger's as well. I honestly just cannot pass up a trip to visit Amish country. 

There is so much more to learn but for now I will have the hard lesson of hoeing out the garden and praying for rain.