On 3/14/2021 12:33 AM, Michael Trew wrote:
> On 3/14/2021 12:10 AM, Snag wrote:
>> On 3/13/2021 10:45 PM, Michael Trew wrote:
>>> Does anyone still can food in ball jars?Â* I'm thinking about planting
>>> a lot of tomatoes this year and canning some.Â* I never have before,
>>> but there's a first time for everything I reckon.
>>
>> We still have some tomatoes from last year down in the cellar - and I
>> have 24 tomato plants started for this year . Got jelly and jams and
>> pickles and peaches down there too ! Most from home grown or picked wild
>> on our land . Tomatoes freeze well too , just rinse off , freeze loose
>> on a cookie sheet then bag in gallon ziplocks . To use , just hold under
>> hot water for a few seconds and slip the skin off . I'll be using some
>> of our preserved tomatoes tomorrow for a big batch of spaghetti sauce .
>
> I made a tiny batch of homemade tomato sauce for Italian style
> Margharetta pizza the other day.Â* Do you normally blanch and peel
> tomatoes before canning them?


The ones we put in jars , yes , they are blanched and peeled . The
frozen are just washed and frozen with no further processing .


>
> I don't have a lot of land, and did a few container tomatoes last year.
> Â*I have a pick and a small rototiller, and I might make a row of tomato
> and bell pepper plants along the southern side of my house before the
> hill drops off.Â* I saved quite a few bell pepper and tomato seeds for
> the occasion!Â* I'm in eastern Ohio, but I probably should start them off
> pretty soon.

If those seeds are from commercial tomatoes , expect to be surprised
.. They will most likely NOT breed true . Get a good heirloom variety
such as Rutgers or Marglobe if you want to save seed for next year .
Roma is a good variety for use in sauces and paste . If you aren't going
to save seed pretty much any hybrid variety will do .

--
Snag
In 1775, the British demanded we give them our guns.
We shot them