The LAZY Way to Preserve Food Over Winter
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- Опубліковано 16 лис 2022
- I recently was asked by a viewer on how I preserve all my food for winter, and so I thought I would make a video to outline my core strategy for preserving food for the cold and dark months that perhaps differs to most but works excellently if you have little time for your garden, especially trying to preserve everything in late summer to autumn. I hope that this gives you some food for thought regarding how you approach feeding yourself over the winter months. Of course I do do some traditional preserving methods, but this video shows my core way that eliminates a lot of hassle!
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Very exciting news!!! The Inspiring Garden Series 2023 is kicking off on Saturday! Here is the full playlist: ua-cam.com/play/PLPGyuloevt5ylrTHyRjlzHy_FBzKcCUxY.html
Jealous of your pak choi, mine never get that big....😎👍
It is very good advice for people in the U.K..In this way you eat always fresh and only what you need. In colder parts of Europe traditionally we start preparing for winter end of summer. If you organise yourself well in the kitchen it will not be as painful as it seems and can be quite fun for all family. You can dry your harvest, smoke it, pickle, make it in a sour way, you bury them and protect from cold and humidity. There are thousand ways to do this. In winter there is no way you can grow anything as it is just too cold and soil is frozen.
I completely agree with this approach. For me the value is in eating food seasonally, eating fresh food and ensuring I don’t worry about creating space for food preservation that I don’t have. Looking to adopt this approach for next season. Thanks for sharing!
Farm to table is very in, and fresh is best right?
You are eating in season. That's good. We all should. But last summer we had draught ..... which made previous harvest very important. So take time to preserve. It is so important to be frugal with the world the way it is. Many people will be making choices between heating their homes and eating this year. Dehydrating, and canning, are viable options.
If you have an abundance, share with your neighbors or barter for things you don't have. This is what our ancestors did.
Interesting thought. I enjoy growing year round, but not because of lack of time. I feel that if I'm too busy to preserve the bounty of my garden, I'm TOO BUSY, and I need to discard something from my life and achieve a better balance. Love your videos, I've learned so much!
It’s a funny year, in Australia it’s spring, will be summer on December 1st, and some places here are still getting frosts 😮
Other years it’s basically been summer weather since the start of spring, 1st September, but this year has been way to much rain that’s causing major flooding, deaths, and not enough heat or sun, it’s horrible, hopefully next year will be better.
Because things freeze solid here, in winter, I look for crops that just need a root cellar:
Potatoes
Carrots
Turnip and Rutabaga
Beets
Parsnips
(Sunchokes can be dug when the ground thaws in spring)
Or in a pantry:
Winter squash
Pumpkin
There are some preservation I do Because the product I want is achieved in the preserving:
Bottled apple pie filling
Bottled berries
Pickles
This is ultimately my goal, although I plan on having a longer shift job, I believe it’ll give me the money I need to lease land, and save tons of money feeding myself, instead of predicting costs and expenses. This will have to happen no less than a few years from now… so all I can do is plan. By the way, Impressive list!
This is how we do it, I walk the garden and harvest what is ready. I can make a rice or noodle bowl with just about any veggies and fresh quail eggs. Thanks, I have always wondered about the push to canning and freezing. I prefer fresh and I’ve learned to grow things that we will eat or give to the animals. I planted too many “designer” veggies, my first few years, now it is all about staples and with my own seeds or cuttings. Thanks for always encouraging us
Our winter is hard and long. (No polytunnel). I can harvest kale for a long while but that's about it, and even that eventually gets buried under snow.
My favorite preserving lazy preserving method is "carry down to a box in the basement," which is partly why I love growing winter squash. I can eat them through April, into May.
I really like that aprouch, but also like to preserve food, mostly by fermenting, which is also good for our bodies
We do a hybrid thing of both putting up and fresh, but, fresh all year round is critical. Fresh is peak in vitamins and minerals, most people don't realize that these are the glue, that helps your body burn those calories more efficiently while keeping 'nutritional hunger' at bay, stopping the vicious eating cycle in it's tracks. In times where you have to make your money stretch, the more fresh you can incorporate, the more you keep in your bank account.
So true. I only grow peas to snack fresh from the pod. Fills me up.
Hi Huw!
I'm from Victoria in Australia 🇦🇺 also a temperate climate...
How come you don't talk in terms of 'late spring' or '1 month into summer' etc? Or even 'when daytime temps reach an average of 20c'?
We love your videos but it's always so hard to do the mental arithmetic when your talking in terms of 'planting by December' etc
I reckon you would reach a whole lot more people in the southern hemisphere if you did 🥰
Talking in definate 'months' vs 'temps or teaspoons' to me seems a bit like talking in 'cups and teaspoons' vs 'grams' when cooking 🤣 ask your chef mates about that 🤣 a bit antiquated
Love your stuff! Been watching since you were a little whipper snapper! 🤘🤘
Huw, I was excited seeing clips of your winter garden! Would you please show us more? I also love clips of the rain and seeing your charming house in the background!
I am lucky enough that I don't have a winter here in Thailand and can grow a variety of stuff all year round. My problem is the opposite to that of the UK. I have to endure the summer heat, which can reach 45 degrees C, where a lot of veg. just can't handle it. Great video Huw.
Wow that sounds rather horrible! I start melting at 25 degrees C haha! Thank you for watching
Can u grow any potatoes there?? I've heard yes and no
@@E_O_S_ Only sweet potatoes.
Thanks Huw. I struggle to preserve and store everything during the summer and autumn.
So I will focus much more winter veg. Huge thanks
I picked potatoes today. From plant to plate in under 1 hr 😋 👌
The sooner I put up this greenhouse the sooner I can adopt the year-long grower lifestyle.
Beautiful photography and excellent information. Thanks, Huw!
You are most welcome Anita, always grateful for the feedback!
envy your mild winters that allows this. I am hoping to have a poly tunnel next year to see if we can keep the ground from freezing quite so hard, and keep the deep snow off.
My climate prohibits many of these crops from making it thru winter too. No way are we getting root crops out of the frozen ground! Ever under cover. But I want to try many of the greens under cover and see how I do.
We have problems preserving root crops in ground, as our winter temperatures get into the -40 F range. Currently we bring in root crops and store in a refrigerator set at the highest setting. We REALLY need a root cellar!
We can reliably have mustard green flowers in the spring from overwintered plants. As we don't have a long fall/mild winter time winter crops are not very dependable unless under cover. More often then not we have hard freezes in late September/ early October.
Ahhh temperate climate, that must feel heavenly ...I'm in north east canada and from Sept on all I keep hearing are voices whispering winter is coming 😅
Although I do have quite a long and abundant period of kale shoots/flowers spring and early summer (most people in my climate have no idea we can even do this)
What zone are you?
What kind of kale is that? I'm in Finland, but haven't managed to keep any kales over winter. I'd LOVE IT if I could have some nice flowers in spring! 😍
I have grown a lot more winter crops this year. One advantage is I had less gluts this summer, but plenty to harvest from late spring and my freezer is full. A lot of the winter crops were second crops of the year. I have two full sized plots and about about a quarter of a plot is permanent crops like fruit. A quarter is over wintering crops for the spring harvest or cover crops. The remainder is winter crops, most, but not all the beds grew summer crops earlier in the year.
The living refrigerator. This is what I do too. Prep during spring and summer for abundance all winter.
Aspiring 1st time gardener. Fan since loo roll. Rural southern utah
Thank you for another inspiring video!
It is my pleasure!!!
I love the idea of switching priorities and plantings. I live in south Texas and prefer my fall and winter gardening. For one thing it isn’t 100 degrees.
Greetings fron Asturias, Spain.
Here, tree cabbages (we call them berzas) are grown in every garden, and they taste better with frosts. We usually eat them with potatoes, white beans, chorizo and blood sausage (pote asturiano we call it). But it is also used in other recipes as galician soup.
And hens just love them!
Thank you so much I love watching your Show you give me so many ideas Thanks 😊 🙏
Wicked! Happy gardening Joyce!
I've not had any luck growing carrots during the main growing season, and as they're ones of my favourite veg. I was quite disappointed. I like watching u-tube videos like yours and on one channel the guy said that he grows mostly all year round. His philosophy is try it, if it works it works - if not, so be it. So I sowed a pack of carrots early September in a container and every seedling must have come up 🙂 I've transplanted them into large containers, ie buckets, basket type containers etc - and I now have amazing carrots growing. So happy 😎
Made me hungry, brilliant shot of leeks being pulled out in the snow 🤘
thanks,last week i promised to give more concentration to the winter crops on our allotment
Totally agree. It's what I do except I grow and store potatoes, 2nd early Charlottes harvested in July and they store really well. The potato bed is then planted with leek transplants and brassicas; kale and Psb so it's full of food for winter and spring. Eating seasonally is such a joy!
Love this vision and totally agree !!!
Very important topic! Thanks!
Really interesting, makes huge sense when you think about it.
Thank you Huw, as always, inspiring and beautiful video.
Wonderful information! Thanks!
Glad it was helpful :D
Love your videos Huw, this is an interesting concept. I'm sub tropical Queensland 🇦🇺🏝 so heading into summer. I've tried a different approach this year with 'random gardening' getting rid of block plantings that I've been doing for 15+ years. Also incorporating more flowers for the bees. This seems to be doing wonders to confuse pests giving me lots of different foods to eat all year round without the need to preserve and just enjoying my gardening more. Much love and thanks for all your content, it is exceptional 🙏 🥰
Wonderful, encouraging, helpful vid
I am pleased:D
Thank you so much for this video and for sharing these ideas. I often feel bad that I have a glut of some vegetable and don’t manage to preserve it for winter. I’m going to try to create a better balance of harvests year round using your approach.
This is my first year beginning to explore winter gardening to see what can/can't grow in my cold zone 5 winters. Inspiring video of things to try!
Leeks are so incredible! I'd love to see more on leeks for those just starting out if you haven't already covered.
Great thoughts Huw. Looking forward to the Inspiring Gardens season again.
Thank you so much!!!
Thank you 🙏🏼
Its a great approach. Makes so much sense.
Thanks Holly!
Thank you for this video Huw! As a foster carer of 4 I just have no time to tend my allotment and do preserving! You have made me look at my plot in a totally different way! 🙏❤️
I love canning and I love taking the food I grow and preserving it for the longer colder winter months. Nothing better than canned tomatoes from your own garden. I believe there is a place for both, preserving and growing into the winter months for fresh produce. I have not tried growing a three or four season garden where I live (zone 8b PNW) and there is great value in what you are saying Huw. I plan to look at my garden planner and see how I can utilize my garden to give me fresh produce year round. Thanks so much!
Great video with lots of advice. I wish i could leave my leeks in throughout the Winter, they always succum to leek rust but, i stil grow them. Thanks for sharing and take care 🙂
Ive come to really enjoy planning my staple winter crops, leeks, sprouting broccoli, Savoy's, Brussel sprouts and lots of kale. Looking forward to the first pickings of my long awaited asparagus during the hungry gap. It's so satisfying just picking what you need for meals seasonally. I tend to prefer quality over quantity, something I've learned over the years.
Working with the seasons is the best what you can do 👍 I'm trying to grow more and more winter crop every year. This year I've been overwhelmed with my tomatoes 🍅 in summer and I harvested the last ones on the 15th of November they are still green but they're getting red bit by bit.
My wife and I find that just eating whatever we grow seasonally from the garden is more for us than getting too deep into too many methods of preserving foods over a longer period of time. I mean, potatoes and onions do last a good while in the pantry. But we don't go out of our way to do a ton of canning, for example. We are fine with eating green beans several days a week throughout the entire season, for example. And we just don't eat green beans again until they are back in season. Sure, sometimes by the end of the season you have had enough of whatever you've been harvesting for months straight. But by the time the season comes around again, we are always ready to tuck back into them.
This makes perfect sense to me. I just wish I'd timed most of my Winter veg correctly. My first Winter growing season. We went from 110 degrees in Nor. California to mild Fall/Winter, I thought it was too hot to start my Winter crops. Now, I have very little to harvest while I wait on my veggies to grow.
Some great ideas Huw (still missing chard tho, 4 frosts on it so far and still going strong!) what would make an excellent reference video is sucsession planning (this is missing from a lot of veg growing books too) you mentioned you plant leeks after early spuds, knowing what starts to have ready for planting after a crop comes out so you can maximise efficiency in the beds would be a valuable resource!
Wow... New one ♥️
Totally relate to your leek-fanaticism!
I would suggest digging below ground and create a pantry, suitable for storage, the lower ground temperature should help
I'm totally with you in using the garden as a kind of "pantry", especially as I have highly limited freezer space, avoid canning, and aim to minimize kitchen waste. Kale and leeks are new for me to grow, but I love knowing there's something edible out there that can withstand the cold. I'll also leave some scallions out there, but more protected. I put a cold frame in one of my raised beds for greens/lettuce, but I recently started sprouting seeds for their more concentrated nutrition. Given how pricey greens are lately, I'm happy to free up that extra space in the cold frame for other veg and get my "greens" from fresh sprouts. Eating sprouts satisfies this home gardener's thirst for seeing something sprout and grow so quickly. Now I'm thinking about getting the most out of bolted plants... get their seeds (if they're a suitable sprouting kind of veg) to sprout during the winter. The downside to this in my small garden is that I can't afford to leave something to bolt and go to seed as I want to relay/succession plant and sow. The real estate is critical.
Good info, thanks man.
My pleasure!
Absolutely this is the way I grow and how I harvest and use my veggies . Question - What size plastic tubs do you grow your potatoes in please ? I might try that idea !
I sounds interesting but I’ve never tried it but we are experimenting with a few plants this winter. I think a. Old frame would be beneficial to the winter garden.
Thanks, helpful to know how to cook some of these. Oka and Jerusalem Artichoke... beets. The greens! Kale.
Don't know about the artichokes but I just chuck the nz yams in the roasting pan with all the other winter veg. They're delicious and roast to a lovely soft texture.
I sincerely appreciate your time given. The one thing I have found, living in the US, is that when I mention certain options, such as kale, the resident simply does not recognize the plant as a valuable commodity (edible or not) so that I must hide it within the scape.. Funny to say it in such a manner.
Austorian Tree Cabbbage and Leeks! I didnt know they could be grown in such a manner!
If I move to Wales, that is definitely how I'd do it. As it is, I'm doing things adapted to our beautiful Canadian winters. :) Because I'm not a fan of preserving water, I dehydrate everything that can be dehydrated and ferment the rest. A few things here and there go in the freezer, but I haven't made the jump to canning (yet) :)
your leeks look amazing!!
I like Eliot Coleman and his Four Season Harvest. He's in Maine so his environment is challenging
Hi huw. This is my approuch to winter in the garden. Though i have to collect potatoes and onions and put them in the shed, the rest of the plot keeps giving food as much as posible. It snows here, and we have likely 3 months all cover with snow.
Thanks 4 the video
Having difficulty finding Oka in US but will keep searching. Great video!
Spelt oca or New Zealand Yam:)
Preserving can be a bit overwhelming. I stick to Ribena, redcurrant jelly, damson cheese and apple juice. Oh. And tomato juice/pizza sauce/salsas etc. A few relish/chutneys. Freezer space is tight so the garden becomes a winter/spring pantry for us and the chickens for greens/roots/herbs. Although leeks, sprouts and fennel this are a disaster this year.
I’ve not tried the tree cabbage but if you’re saying it tastes like cabbage I’ll give it a go next year.
Aren’t we lucky in the uk having a reasonably mild autumn and often mild winters…. Even my outdoor peppers are still going strong 💪🏿 #countingBlessings
Love your video content: Easy on the eye and brain.
Huw I love to watch your videos and I do wait every week to see a new one. What has been very educational and helpful for me, because I have just started to be a practitioner of growing my own food. I always have admired your asturian cabbage trees, but unfortunately I can't find the seeds anywhere to buy some. 😢
Any advice about where I could find them?
Thanks!!! And keep those inspirational videos coming!! 😘
Very 👍 good
Always good advice Huw. I've only recently started watching your site, I wondered if you have dealt with pest?. I work on an old allotment in Manchester UK, we have white fly by the cloud full, which can make kale etc inedible. Wire worm potatoes and now recently leek moth that destroys leeks in weeks, also are favourite veg. It is that bad many plotters have stop growing leeks onions and even garlic. Deseases like white rot (onions), club root (brassicas) try and wipe out the rest of our crops.
Your information has been so good I wondered if you have produced a book, as if you haven't you should do. Thanks again Alan a Droylsden plotter.
Hello Huw,
I want to start my gardening, but I know that I need to start with composting which requires green and brown material the majority portion of your compost's green manure comes from grass clippings.
What is the variety of the grass in your garden and which variety gives us a lot of green produce which benefits the composting requirements.
Thank you.
I learn a lot from your videos. I love the vibe.♥😃
Hi!
Eating fresh is wonderful if you can . Is there anything better than ta plate of tbe first runner beansI. I am not a great fan of canning but I sometimes freeze some vegetables if I feel they will go bad before I can use them. When I cook I soups and stews I make enough to freeze some as well. Winter vegetables are so fantastic as they last and store much longer. Thank you for a great informative video. Many thanks from a Welsh girl living in Cyprus
I would love to learn how to grow leeks with such a long white stem.
I love these ideas...and have tried them all (except tree collards which I would love!) . However we have super rats here and almost nothing survives in the garden :)
I am responding from Canada,stil a welshman, yes we have a very different growing season, but I try to overwinter some herbs and others by bringing them into my slightly wintered garage,
they are mostly dormant,give them grow lights for most part of the day, feed as necessary but not oo much, worked last year, have hsd good luck with my rosemary and other plants.
but they have not died My growing season is from earl may to october, Most of my seedlings are grow indoors in a hothouse, lights andeverythings transplant into grow grow pots, theninto
and hotrooms, thene to .outside therapy rooms, let them get acc laimatiseC Come the sring I will be ordering all my veggie maybe DIOLCH YN FAWR
Hi, I really like your video. Thank you. I am in Atlantic Canada. I am familiar with the concept of leaving winter crops in the ground and picking as needed. Brussel sprouts are considered winter crop, but they are not root crop, so I am curious how your storage in the ground concept works with Brussel sprouts. I considered bring the pots into the house , but I don't want the bugs in the house. Is a covered bed the answer? How would you store Brussel sprouts?
I plant to sundry everything
Hello Huw thanks for all the tips at Min 8,51 what plant is it thanks alot
I live in Northern California, and I am afraid to start a vegetable garden because of animals, mostly squirrels and racoons. Till now we mostly grew flowers and fruit with my husband. Well, my husband grew tomatoes and he had to deal with furry thieves.
Great video as always!
❓🤔What is this "Awka" I'm not sure I heard you right - I have never seen this pink tuber thing?! Please tell me more so I can source it near me!
Thanks again for the great info and ideas!
Spelt oca, native to South America. Is also known as New Zealand yam as it has become very popular with gardeners there.
@@shanewaters592 wonderful, thank you so much!
Hi Huw! I was wondering how long your potatoes last in storage this way. Do they last long enough to save some as seed for the following season? Thanks for the inspiration!
Ezra. Mine do. I stack a my buckets in a dark shed once the soil dries out a bit. No light. What’s left in late spring I use as seed potatoes.
@@amandar7719 thank you!!
Where are you gardening? I’m in zone 6b, Nova Scotia Canada. We also had a SUPER mild winter. In fact the mildest winter I can remember in the 30 years I’ve lived here. Until recently it had been floating between -10c and 10c. In fact tomorrow we are expecting the temperature to go up to 10c. I even planted seeds in my garden already just to see what happens since I’ve never seen a winter like this.
I'm interested in knowing how you cook your Jerusalem artichokes.
When did you sew the beetroot when you want to harvest them in fall/winter?
VERY helpful video Huw; tks!!! What is the New Zealond Tuber that you pointed out? Plz someone help me; I'm hearing impaired and cannot afford hearing aids.
Huw, I just planted seeds of New Zealand Spinach. Heard it's a valuable Leafy Green to grow. Wish me well :)
It's called oca, or New Zealand yam (although it comes from South America).
Please tell me how to get seeds for the Asturian Tree Cabbage. I can't find it anywhere over here. Please help. Buffalo, New York, USA.
Are all brassica flower shoots edible, or are there some exceptions?
Can you grow tomatoes and cub’s ect.. inside at winter time?
In the polycrub I am usually harvesting tomatoes until December and then that is that, not enough warmth or daylight for ripening etc then sadly and I don't fancy using growlights
What is that tuber? Hoccard? (I never heard of it and can't find it, even less spell it) I live in Alberta (western Canada) and that seems something that could be worth a try...
hat is the spelling for the large leaf cabbage, very interested in growing it for next fall?
Asturian tree cabbage
Does anyone know a source of seed for this tree cabbage in the US? Thanks!
so do you plant winter crops in spring, summer or autumn?
There are several foods here I have never heard of, like oka and tree cabbage. Do you sells seeds? Also I have never tried leeks. Is that an onion?
I'd like to know about the tree cabbage too. Searching for it brings up so many different things and I want to make sure I'm looking for the right thing.
Leeks are in the onion family but they're not the same as onions. They have a much milder taste.
What was the name of the tree cabbage? I never heard of that before and I want to give it a try.
Asturian tree cabbage, a short lived perennial will crop for 3-4 years if you remove all flower shoots. The shoots are delicious. They can be propagated from side shoots. Good luck, they are a great crop. One other to recommend is collard 'Teddie' . Similar to tree cabbage with darker, tasty leaves you harvest a couple of leaves as you need them.
@@suehunter5024 Thank you Sue, do you know if the Asturian tree cabbage is also called Portuguese Kale? I can't find anything called the Asturian Tree Cabbage that I can get in the US but it seems the Portuguese Kale is the same thing. I found some of that in Etsy and I will check for the Teddie the collard as well. Thanks Doll.
I don't think Portuguese kale is the same thing. Asturian tree cabbage is a unique light golden green colour. I'm not sure what regulations apply to shipping seed but you may be able to get some from a small UK company Real Seeds.
Does the tree cabbage need to be netted to keep caterpillars off, during the summer? You seemed to be suggesting that it doesn't get 'butterfly interest' like actual cabbages do. I use a 6 x 8 greenhouse frame covered in mesh as a brassica cage - would a tree cabbage need to go in there?
Good question. Those leaves though! Look large enough to use a battery hand vac to suck up caterpillars 🐛 for emptying into chicken coop. 😃
I grow tree cabbage under netting now as cabbage whites did too much damage in the past. One alternative is to spray with Bacillus thuringiensis sold as treatment for caterpillars on box hedging. It's harmless to humans and other insects. Spray at first sighting of tiny caterpillars not before.
I use tulle netting fabric. Cheap about $12 a bolt on Amazon (last I bought it a couples yrs ago) and holds up really well over a few seasons. Keeps rodent and critters away too it catches their nails and they don’t like it. No harm to anything but affordable protection, though can keep out pollinators so might open it up on days when that makes sense. I wrap it around my fruit tree trunks and over smaller fruit trees too. Otherwise the squirrels get all my peaches. Happy growing!
Huw, I am interested in growing into the winter but my raised bed is bare. If I construct a frame and begin planting early December, will I see much success at all? I'm in zone 6a
Hi Matthew, the only thing you will properly be able to plant would be some garlic, however by april you can start planting lots of things!
@@HuwRichards noted. So how early do you start your winter crops so that they are hearty enough to survive?
@@matthewlobban6236 I garden in 6a. Fall planting for my area depends on the timing of maturity of the crop being grown. I count backwards from the time when the crop needs to be harvested and adding a week or so because the day length is getting shorter and more overcast days. Also depending upon if I plan to put a row cover or protection of some kind over them. Several you tube channels that garden in 6a have been sharing some great ideas for extending the season. Hope this helps... Happy gardening Matthew!
@@marking-time-gardens Thank you for the info! Which 6a UA-cam channels do you suggest?
@@matthewlobban6236 I just kept checking them out till I found some that seemed kind of the same as my area. 6a can be different depending on the area of the world you live in and microclimates can make a difference too. Even though Huw is in a different zone than we are we can still gain many ideas to adapt to our different growing environments. There are 100s of channels that can be zone 6a, it just takes a little time to find some that fits your area.
Do you grow leeks from seeds?
I find Jerusalem artichokes upset our tummies(very gassy) - not good if you have ibs.