Jar canning seems to have gone the way of the Dodo

[Primalclaws1974]

I think that is one of the main reasons canning is going away, but, there are still a lot of us out there who depend on a garden and we save, at least in my case, a lot of money during a growing season although I do have a larger than normal kitchen garden. I save seeds, make my own compost and am a total organic gardener. I grow a large amounts of what we will consume and do not grow stuff we will only consume a small amount. I don't grow dried beans for instance or onions or garlic or potatoes because they are cheap at the store. I grow corn, tomatoes, peppers, green beans, cole crops etc that cost a lot of money at the store. Down here corn is 4 ears for dollar, green beans $1.79 a pound on sale. I grow root crops in large quantities, large enough for 2 or 3 years worth. During harvest I will have two 23 quart pressure canners and a couple of 19 quart water bath canners going at the same time. But, as I said you have to have a large enough garden to do this. The bigger the garden the more you can grow and the more you can save

It makes sense what you are saying. If you don't grow potatoes what root crops are you referring too? Carrots? Radishes? At least in the Midwest, neither of them are expensive either. Where do you store all your jars? My grandma used to keep them on shelving in her basement. She had a finished basement, with climate control. I am not sure how well old root cellars or dirt-floor basements would work. Although the product is sealed, moisture and temperature can affect them.

 

[Chuck]

It makes sense what you are saying. If you don't grow potatoes what root crops are you referring too? Carrots? Radishes? At least in the Midwest, neither of them are expensive either. Where do you store all your jars? My grandma used to keep them on shelving in her basement. She had a finished basement, with climate control. I am not sure how well old root cellars or dirt-floor basements would work. Although the product is sealed, moisture and temperature can affect them.

I grow carrots about every 3 years. I grow beets every other year. I can't stand radishes so I don't grow them at all. I do grow new potatoes every year but only in a big container and I harvest the potatoes at the same time as the first crop of green beans is ready. I can them both at the same time.. I put a lot of the canned jars in the pantry and the rest, including the emptys in a shaded storage shed.

 

[Chuck]

We don't can stuff in England, but we do do a lot of bottling

Just opened a 3 year old jar of Chutney today, lovely

Not got a fridge or freezer so everything has to be dried, salted, smoked or bottled

Zigs, It is a matter of semantics. By canning we mean canning in 1/2 pint, 1 pint and 1 quart glass jars. A few people still can in cans and you can still order metal cans and canners but I have never used one. My grandmother used metal cans but that was 75 years ago. I think I still have the canner somewhere in my junk pile

 

[marlingardener]

CanadianLoriz, jars, lids, and rings can be purchased at grocery stores here in the States, or at Target or Walmart. I don't know about Canada, but most likely you can find the supplies at the same sort of stores.
Most of my jars came from a friend's mother who was cleaning out her storage shed--boxes and boxes of 1/2 pint, pint, quart, and even a few gallon jars. It was a gold mine! If there is a garage sale or auction nearby, I always look to see if there are canning jars. Even if I don't need them, I have friends who can use them. I stock up on lids in the fall when the stores are wanting to get them off the shelves, and re-use the rings over and over. After the lid has sealed and cooled, the ring can be removed for using in the next round of canning (or bottling!).

 

[zigs]

Your bottling eqals our canning.
I have never understood why it is called canning here because we use glass jars too!

I'm only winding you up

I reuse old jars, as long as they've got that plastic coating under the lid, vinegar plays havoc with the metal if they don't.

As an aside, one of the earliest expeditions to use metal cans was the Franklin voyage to discover a North West Passage across the top of the World.

They used lead solder to make the cans, killed em all horribly

 

[CanadianLori]

Marlin gardener Yes, i am aware of most noth american sources for jars. I use the usda handbook on canning, ball book, bernardin and homesteadersbooks for reference mamaterial and as a basis to develop my own recipes.

I was just curious about overseas suppliers.

 

[Chuck]

I'm only winding you up

I reuse old jars, as long as they've got that plastic coating under the lid, vinegar plays havoc with the metal if they don't.

As an aside, one of the earliest expeditions to use metal cans was the Franklin voyage to discover a North West Passage across the top of the World.

They used lead solder to make the cans, killed em all horribly

I still have jars that my grandmother used back in the 1920's, a few Mason's and Ball's. They are all blue in color. I have a box of Mason lids that have separate rubber rings that are placed on the lids before canning from the same era