Pickle Season Has Arrived

It is the end of July and the cucumbers are coming on full force.  The blooms appeared several weeks ago and I had been picking a few here and there as the earliest ones grew big enough.  This week I had finally picked enough to make a full batch of pickles.

 From now until the first frost I will probably be canning pickles every few days to keep up with the harvest.  The plants are still loaded with new flowers and I can see dozens of tiny pickles all over the vines, so I think I will be plenty busy between harvesting and canning them all.  The process will become part of my daily routine for the next couple of months.  In the morning I will pick all the pickles that have grown to a good size.  They will be washed, trimmed and soaked in brine for 12 hours and then canned in the evening.

For this first batch of the year I am adding fresh grape leaves to each jar.  I have read that they help the pickles stay crunchier, and a neighbor that lives up the street will let me take whatever grape leaves that I want from their small vineyard.  If they really do make a big difference I will likely make it a regular part of my recipe.

My goal for this year is to can over one hundred quarts of dill pickles.  I have a tried and true recipe and know several people that are willing to buy pickles from me until I run out, so this will be an opportunity to make a little extra money for my homestead too.

I am always excited to can the first batch of pickles for the year.  Canning pickles is becoming one of my favorite summer traditions and I hope to be able to continue it for many years to come.  I have a feeling that if I can keep it up, I may find a viable market for one of my favorite homestead crops.