For the last 2 years, my sister Dawn has been able to get figs through her companies landlord. He has a fig tree-a whole garden for that matter-behind the building my sisters employer rents. Last year, I was able to can 1/2 dozen jars of preserves. Today, 12 beautiful pint size jars of strawberry-fig preserves sit on the counter, popping ever so often to let me know I did it right. (right on cue, I hear another one LOL)
I'm not the Martha Stewart of gardening and canning. My oldest sister, Kim is that. She had so many cucumbers one year, I'm surprised she didn't end up hating pickles before it was over. And my brother, Rick and his wife-Kathy, know what there is to know about organic gardening. I tried last year. I really tried hard but I had bugs eatting the cabbage and broccoli, and the eggplant never did develope. Kathy tells me after the summer ends that it probably wasn't as "organic" as I thought since our neighbor sprayed his yard commercially monthly and when it rained, it would run off in the garden. drats! I'm ashamed to admit this, but in a way, I'm glad my younger sister Dawn doesn't have a garden. She would end up doing it ten times better than me anyway. After owning her own landscaping company, she knows which plant grows the best next to what plant, how to fertilize, ect. She would have her photo on the cover of some gardening mag holding up a ten pound tomato!
Which is why hearing the jars pop on the counter is music to my ears. I can't grow the figs, but mama here can sure preserve them! I'll leave the growing to my brother and sisters. Mother earth is safe with them.
