Preserving food at home & best gardening tools

Garden season is officially in full effect, which means it’s finally time to harvest and preserve! Whether your new to gardening or you’re a pro, these tips will set you up for success. I’m sharing my favorite methods for preserving food at home in this post. In addition, I’m also sharing some of our best gardening tools!

Best gardening tools & preserving food at home

“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” -Audrey Hepburn

During such a time of uncertainty in the world, there’s something beautiful about having hope in tomorrow. Although we don’t know what tomorrow, next week, or next year will look like, we can still plant with the hopes of growing and harvesting. Isn’t gardening the perfect analogy for life?

Living in the Midwest, garden season always feels far too short. We soak up these hot days and full harvest baskets with the understanding that the bitter cold winter months are just around the corner. Even though I wish growing season lasted all year round, perhaps these short months makes us more appreciative for the harvest we’re able to experience, even when it feels too short. In addition, preserving food at home allows us to enjoy the fruits of our harvest all year long.

Seeing as we’re unable to grow year round without access to a greenhouse, preserving food at home is a major priority. Canning, dehydrating, and freezing allows us to enjoy farm fresh produce all year round! Below includes our list of best gardening tools & items for preserving food at home.

Indoor Planting

• Flourescent grow light system
• Organic seed starter
• Seedling trays
• Waterproof seedling mat

Organic Vegetable Seeds

If you’re looking to purchase a collection of organic vegetable seeds, then I absolutely LOVE the options offered through Sustainable Sprout. However, If you want to mix and match your seed packets or purchase larger quantities, then I highly recommend ordering from Grow Organic. We also recently purchased microgreen seeds from Trueleaf Market, and I’m excited to see how well they grow!

Before purchasing your seeds, be sure to consider your long term harvest goals. For example, if you’re hoping to start preserving your food at home, then remember to plant more than you will immediately need. That way, you’ll have enough produce to enjoy during the summer months, while simultaneously preserving enough food to last a good chunk of the year.

• Tomato Seeds Variety Pack
• Vegetable Seeds
• Hot Pepper Seeds
• Salad Greens
• Herb Seeds

Harvest

Harvesting organic produce might be one of my all time favorite chores on the farm. Below includes some of our favorite gardening tools during harvest time. As you continue to harvest and stockpile your veggies, then it’s also time to start thinking about ways of preserving your food at home!

• Gardening gloves
• Harvest basket (We have this one, but this one is similar and available on Prime!)
• Gardening pruning shear
• Gardening boots
• Natural tick repellent (Rose geranium oil, amber glass spray bottles, + witch hazel)

Preserving food at home

Preserving food at home is an efficient way to utilize all of your delicious garden goodies! In addition, it’s also fun! For reference, we utilize a few different methods for preserving food at home. Our personal favorites include canning, dehydrating, and freezing.

• Dehydrator (Budget friendly option; Splurge option)
• Canning (Budget friendly option; Splurge option)
• 32 oz Ball mason jars
• Vinegar