October in the Garden

By K. Ruby Blume

October is the time to start to harvest our year and take stock of what has grown and flourished and what has struggled to survive. It is time to start the process of letting go of what is no longer needed and to prepare our larders for the leaner times.

	Abundant Fall garden: carrots, salad greens, and basil in the foreground; dahlias and zinnias behind

Here in Southern Oregon, we already got our first frost. The squash vines shriveled up, revealing the bountiful harvest of winter squash, the happy bright green basil turned to brown, the dahlias shriveled and wilted, beckoning me to think about lifting the precious tubers from the ground to store them safely in boxes until spring returns. A final harvest of peppers — jalapenos, poblanos, gypsy, scotch bonnet, serranos and thai — fill a couple of 5-gallon buckets and beg to be processed. They will be dried and ground for powdered spice blends and also vinegar pickled and preserved by canning.

Work in the garden this time of year includes pulling out and clearing the dead and dying from the past season, weeding, saving seeds, and preserving the harvest. Here are a couple “how-tos” from the archives of my generalist brain to help you along.
 

	Lettuce gone to seed

Saving Seed

Let’s just say you intentionally let that lettuce bolt and go to seed, okay? Lettuce is in the sunflower family. Just like dandelions, they make a little fluffy seed head. Once you see the fluff, cut the entire stalk, turn it upside down in a paper bag and put it in a dry spot indoors. When completely dry, shake the stalk and the seed will fall into the bag. All plants in this family will come true to variety when saved and planted next year…so you can save the seed of lettuce, chicory, sunflowers, and zinnias by simply letting them dry on the plant. All the plants in the mint family can also be saved this way — these include basil, peppermint, catnip, thyme, and oregano. And you never have to buy tomato seeds again! Just squeeze the seeds from a ripe tomato into a cup, add a little water, let it ferment for a day or two, then strain and dry on a paper towel. Want to know more? Seeds like corn, carrot, broccoli, and squash need special techniques, read my full article here or purchase the seed saving bible, Seed to Seed by Suzanne Ashworth.

Canning Canning Canning ~ A Quick Guide

Canning your own gives you control over what goes in the jar and allows you to preserve your garden bounty. Canned fruit, especially low-sugar jams and compotes, can take the place of other desserts in winter, and a jar of homegrown summer peaches surpasses even ice cream to fill the need of a sweet tooth and is far healthier!

Stocking the larder — neatly stacked jam and honey wine in various stages

Water bath canning sterilizes the food, killing any microorganisms and sealing the jar, so it can be stored on the shelf at room temperature. If properly canned, the food inside the jar will be safe to eat indefinitely, though after about 18 months will decline in both nutritional value and palatability. Thus it is recommended to can as much of an item as you will use (or give away or sell) between now and the next time that food is ripe for picking. What makes the food sterile is a combination of acidity and heat processing. High-acid food can be processed in boiling water (212 degrees), while low-acid foods require additional heat (240 degrees), which is achieved with the use of a special pressure canner.

The only thing that is mortally dangerous in canning is botulism, which produces the liver toxin botulin that thrives in low-acid, anaerobic environments. Botulism cannot survive in acidity below 4.6 pH, so as long as you know the food is high-acid and you boil the proper amount of time, the process is absolutely safe. High-acid foods include fruit (apples, peaches, plums, nectarines, all the berries, figs, apricots, etc that can be made into jam, jelly, juice, compote, or canned in water, juice, or syrup), tomatoes (whole, diced, stewed, or sauced), and vinegar pickles (vegetables or fruit in a brine of one part vinegar to three parts water; some recipes call for more vinegar, but any commercially bought vinegar in this ratio will be safe). Chutneys and salsas and no-meat sauces when properly acidified are safe — refer to a modern canning recipe for proper ratio of vinegar or lemon juice. Meat, fish, and dairy or vegetables without added vinegar are NOT safe to can in a water bath and require a pressure canner to be safe.

What you will need is clean mason jars with rings and lids up to quart size, high-acid food and a pot large enough for your closed jars to be covered by the boiling water. Some recipes call for the food to be cooked prior to canning (“hot pack”) and some do not (“raw pack” or “cold pack”). Processing times will be different for hot pack and raw pack. Look up the processing time for the food you are canning and be sure to leave a quarter-inch of space between the top of the food and the lid of the jar to allow for expansion and contraction, which in the end will seal your jar as the food cools. You can use a specialized canning pot, but any large stock pot will work fine. A canning funnel to fill your jars is useful for keeping the rim clean, and a jar lifter is useful to pull the jars from the hot water when they are done.

Here are two easy sample recipes to try!

Vinegar pickles: Stuff a jar with sliced turnips, beets, radishes, carrots, peppers, beans, or combination. Cover with a brine (one part vinegar, three parts water; salt, sugar, herbs, and spices to taste), leaving a quarter-inch of space. Screw lid on (not too tight) and place in your water bath, with the water covering the jars. Bring to a boil. Once it boils, count 10 minutes, then remove from the water bath and let cool until the lids “pop” down on their own. Store in a cool dry place.

Fruit Compote. Wash and dice any fruit of your choice (or use whole for berries). Put in a pot with about 1/2 cup of water. Sweeten to taste with your sweetener of choice. Cook on medium heat until juicy. Fill clean jars with the fruit mush, leaving 1/4 inch at the top. Screw on lids and place into your water bath making sure the water covers the jars. Look up processing time for that fruit. Once the water boils, start counting your time. When you reach that amount of time, pull your jars from the pot and let cool on the counter til the lids “pop”down on their own. Store in a cool dry place.

K. Ruby Blume is an educator, gardener, beekeeper, author, artist, and activist. As a lifelong learner and hardcore generalist, she has studied everything from permaculture design to sewing machine repair and has taught herself canning, fermentation and cheesemaking techniques, as well as how to set tile, install a sink, do electrical wiring, tend a beehive, and repair a motorcycle.

Ruby holds certificates in permaculture design, massage, coaching, and sheep shearing. She has studied native plants, botany, pollination ecology, soil ecology and microbiology. She has extensive experience in the arts including work with ceramic, mosaic, glass, textile, printmaking, puppetry, collage, assemblage, costume design, and photography. and is known for her work as founder and artistic director of the art for justice project, Wise Fool Puppet Intervention.

The product of three generations of teachers, Ruby’s experience as an educator extends back 30 years. She has taught music, art, puppetry, theatre, gardening, beekeeping, canning, and more to people ages five to 95. She founded The Institute of Urban Homesteading in 2008 and co-authored the book Urban Homesteading: Heirloom Skills for Sustainable Living (with Rachel Kaplan).

Ruby currently lives on 22 acres outside of Grants Pass. Oregon, where she grows vegetables, fruits, flowers, and herbs and cares for cows, sheep, rabbits, chickens, dogs, cats, finches, doves, pigeons, and bees.

You can visit Ruby and her projects on the web at iuhoakland.com.