raspberry and strawberry jam

my mom and i made raspberry jam and strawberry jam.

raspberry:
5 generous cups of raspberry puree with its seeds strained. (started with 8 cups)
1 box surejel pectin
4 cups sugar

the day before, mom pureed the raspberries with her stick blender and strained the seeds out. then yesterday the raspberry puree was brought to a boil on the stove with pectin added. once boiling sugar was added, boiled for one minute, then removed from heat. we had the jelly jars in the canner having been brought to a boil, and the lids and rings in another pot of water having been brought to a boil. we filled the jars and let them cool. all but two sealed. we put those two in the canner for 10 minutes to force them to seal.

6 - half pint (8 oz) jelly jars
2 - quarter pint (4 OZ) jelly jars
plus 1 - half pint jelly jar from the foam. we tried putting it in the microwave to dissipate the foam according to the internet, but that didnt work well.
-total of 8 - 8 oz jars.

the raspberry jam set up too firm.


strawberry:
12 cups (3 quarts) of strawberries (picked from bauer berry farm)
1 box low sugar pectin
5 cups sugar

we put the berries in the pot and used moms stick blender to puree them. the brought to a boil with the pectin. added the sugar and boiled for a minute, then removed from heat. again we had the jars in boiling water in the canner. we filled the jars and let them cool. again two didnt seal and we put them in the canner and they sealed.

9 and 1/2 - half pint (8 oz) jelly jars
2 - quarter pint (4 oz) jelly jars
1 and 1/2 - half pint jelly jars from the foam, that again wouldnt unfoam. still tastes good though.
-total of 12 - 8 oz jars.

the strawberry jam set up just enough. still soft enough to spread.

raspberry jam


with lots of foam


when you bring the fruit to a boil, the foam starts


lids and rings in a pot of water boiling


a canner full of boiling water with the jam jars


strawberry jam


raspberry and strawberry jam


strawberry left, raspberry right. raspberry was strained for seeds.


jar full of raspberry jam foam


left raspberry foam, right strawberry foam. middle strawberry jam with leftover foam


labels

grazing doggies

strawberry patch mid june


puppy was grazing on the berries outside the fennce


happy molly


puppy taught molly how to graze!


yummy berry


puppy was also helping himself to the strawberries INSIDE the fence, poking his head thru the narrow openings in the fencing


molly didnt figure that part out yet


the raspberries are coming!

strawberry time

in late may/early june the strawberries came in


strawberry patch




theres a lone milkweed plant growing in the middle of the strawberry patch


still had some caterpillars, but not so many that i had to sit out there and pick and kill them all. some years i have had to do that.


they're destructive little buggers


puppy taught molly how to help herself in the 'volunteer' strawberry section thats outside the fence.


this one has legs!

strawberry blossoms

i planted comfrey last year in a pot because i was told it can spread and be difficult to kill. last fall i dumped it out and buried it in the bottom of the raised bed that now has the blueberries in it. i figured that'd kill it. nope. not only did it come back in the place raised bed where i had the pot planted, but it came back in the blueberry bed where it was buried under multiple feet of stuff! i let it grow in the first raised bed. i hope i dont come to regret that.


see the long long roots it sent up! over and over and over it keeps sending up more shoots and i keep pulling them out.


the first raised bed, asparagus in the back, daikon and rutabaga sprouting.


molly resting her chin on the edge of the raised bed where i blocked off access to the asparagus the dogs were helping themselves to.


the blueberry raised bed. still not much happening back in may.


the duke plant is starting to green up


strawberry blossoms


strawberry patch - the fenced in part


the not fenced in part. i've been dumping dirt there for a few years (from leveling the pavers over by the greenhouse) and the strawberries sent out runners and populated the dirt pile. the dogs run thru this area so the plants there arent in the greatest shape. and when the strawberries did come in, puppy was helping himself.


my big maple tree.


my fire pit after the bonfire. i made charcoal! notice all the maple tree 'helicopters'. thats what fell overnight. this picture was taken the day after the bonfire. my whole yard was covered in them.

uncovering the strawberries

the strawberry patch, still covered in leaves to survive winter. and molly.


i must have missed one of the runners last fall. we have an escape artist! a strawberry growing outside the strawberry patch. i try to redirect the runners back inside the patch, but this one had rooted already. the lawnmower will take it out though.


all the leaves and the row cover cloth removed


new green strawberry leaves already poking up. you can see how easy it would be to mix up the shredded leaves with all the rest of that when trying to pull them off each spring.


thats why i use the row cover cloth under the leaves. this way i dont end up accidentally pulling up strawberry plants. the cloth gets a bit gooey after all winter under the leaves though. i hang it on the clothesline to dry out and let the wind blow all the leaf bits off.


it looks much less gross after its dried off and windblown.

sweetpea vs strawberries

nom nom nom


strawberries are her favorite