Saving $$$

[Avacado7]

Prices seem to be going skyhigh!
We have planted a garden, and I am hoping to get a dehydrator to preserve some foods for the winter. Are there any suggestions for how to extend the harvest into the winter??

[rawstrength]

Grow sunflowers and pumpkins and save the seeds from them for the winter.

[Raw Yogini]

There is a book called "Four Season Harvest" by Eliot Coleman that explains how and what to grow for each season. Good luck! I have the book but I am waiting until I buy a house in the fall to start the process. I'm renting and can't exactly dig up the yard.

[jacsam]

When everyone else is making salsa and spagetti sauce with all their extra tomatoes, I'm dehydrating them for the winter. I like to snack on them, put some avacado on them, make marinara sauce, break up and sprinkle on salads etc.

[oai]

There is a book called "Four Season Harvest" by Eliot Coleman that explains how and what to grow for each season. Good luck!

Thank you for the book recommendation! I really don't even know what to grow and when.

[Vaclare79]

Is sundried and dehydrated tomatoes the same thing? I think that's what I'm going to do with the extra tomatoes I have this summer. That way I can use them to make my dishes later that have tomatoes.

[oai]

yes. sundried and dehydrating is pretty much the same thing. the only difference, i think, is that you can set the temp. on a dehydrator but with sun drying, the temp. can go over what's recommended for raw.

[Gittel]

Jacsam, how do you store your dehydrated tomatoes?

Gittel

[Gittel]

...bump...

[acjazz28]

Prices seem to be going skyhigh!
We have planted a garden, and I am hoping to get a dehydrator to preserve some foods for the winter. Are there any suggestions for how to extend the harvest into the winter??

If you plant in containers, you can always bring your veggie plants inside to overwinter...if you have the room near a south-facing window, they'll get enough light to continue on. In fact, if you grow stuff like collards and spinach, you can keep them outside as long as they get sufficient sunlight. A little frost actually makes them taste better since they're pretty cold-hardy. Potatoes, garlic and onions can be stored for the winter as well.

There's lots of other great tips on various sites on the internet. I get a lot of info from the experienced gardeners on the Gardenweb forums. Super nice folks with lots of knowledge to share on all aspects of gardening. Just google Gardenweb forums and check out all they have to offer...

acjazz28