Preserve summer in a Mason jar

By Maureen Gilmer, Scripps Howard News Service

Published August 29, 2008 at 3 p.m.

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Everywhere I look it's happening all over again, just as it did in my counterculture years of the 1970s.

In those days there was a gas crisis, an unpopular war, a new environmental consciousness, impossible home loans and generational rebellion against cookie-cutter lifestyles. Sound familiar?

One sign of the times is that the computer/cell-phone generation is starting to rethink its total dependence on technology. And in these simple ideas we found a link to former generations who once lived much closer to the Earth.

Whether you grow your own fruits and veggies or use certified organic farmers'-market produce, the need to preserve it is equally important. Come wintertime, the markets close and the garden is bare, so everyone experiences seasonal limitations.

Learning to preserve fresh fruits and veggies is a skill handed down from mother to daughter since early times.

In the '70s I wanted to learn how to create jam from a plum tree that ripened prodigiously in midsummer. I scoured the Ball Mason Jar canning guide and used its step-by-step instructions to teach myself.

I discovered Certo pectin, which began the first of many efforts to capture and preserve the tastes of summer. These became the most coveted gifts to friends and family.

Then I gathered wild blackberries for fresh tarts and seedy jams. I dried my rose petals on window screens and froze bright orange rose hips for medicinal tea all winter.

I harvested my oregano, rosemary and thyme at peak season, packing them into ornate bottles from the 99-cent store. Filled with olive oil or vinegar, they would steep for many months in a dark cupboard. Old candles were saved to melt down and paint onto the stopper for an airtight seal on a most useful gift.

This kind of thinking is what makes "handmade" living so appealing. It's affordable and it's creative. After a while, you may notice where a neighborhood fruit tree can be harvested for the unappreciative owner.

To many homeowners, the excess fruit becomes a real nuisance, and they're happy to see you take it away. When young families take on this consciousness, the kids involved become far more aware of their environment. Gathering ventures become free excursions that teach where the food came from and how to prepare it in a healthy, loving way.

August begins the time of great harvest all across America. It's also the season when too much good, wholesome food goes to waste because there is such an abundance.

If you have never canned or made jam, this is the perfect time to begin. New Mason jars are inexpensive to buy and nearly free at garage sales or thrift stores. All you need to buy are new lids for just pennies apiece.

A lot has changed since I used that old Ball canning guide. It's been replaced with a beautiful Web site, freshpreserving.com. Instead of written directions, you can see it done with useful how-to videos right on the site.

There's even a treasure trove of crafty ways to decorate the old Mason jars into whimsical gifts for the holidays.

Perhaps one of the great benefits of maturity is that we can look back upon life and see the same patterns repeating themselves over time. It gives us proof that even the darkest days will pass and good times are sure to return.

Maureen Gilmer is a horticulturist and former host of "Weekend Gardening" on DIY Network.

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