Can you freeze the vegetables from the garden and then thaw them out and can them at a later date?(like during winter when there is more time)If so, are there any special instructions for doing this?

-- Monty Dalrymple (ripp927@juno.com), September 21, 1999

Answers

Might loose some nutritional value, but yes you can. Last winter my freezer broke down and could't afford to replace it. Had a canning marathon. Corn, berries, snap beans, venison, beef, turkey. So far evrything we opened tastes great. Now we can everything as it comes in. If you don't have any kids of your own, you might try to round up some from a non-homesteading neighbor to help. We use kids between age 7-12. They are great with prep work, like washing, husking, shelling, etc. and they work with enthusiasm for a couple of cans of food or cookies, or a dollar. Their parents are usually glad to get them out of the house. This year we used a 5 & 7 year old to help plant. They are just the right size to do it without much bending. Then they came back to help harvest and put food up. Now their mom wants to try a food garden. I like to pass it on.

-- Craig Oxendine (sox@threewings.com), September 24, 1999.