Bee Beautiful Garden Club Participates in Canning Class

Recently, the Bee Beautiful Garden Club participated in a canning class to make strawberry jelly and apple butter at Florence Marina State Park. The UGA Stewart County Extension Service, in coordination with the UGA Miller County Extension Service, conducted a workshop to teach proper canning techniques to approximately 12 attendees. For a nominal fee of $5 each participant took home their own canned product. Photo above: Left to right: Nea Permenter and Ashley Hilley.

The class was initiated by a BBGC member, Cindy Trojak, who wanted to continue learning about the equipment and processing techniques. She spring boarded off the BBGC meeting presentation that was given by UGA Sumter and Stewart County Extension Agents back in June of 2022. In that presentation, Mitzi Parker and Christine Garner, Sumter and Stewart County Extension Agents, respectively, spoke of canning and canning safety. Members brought their canner lids to have them tested for proper pressure.

The workshop focused primarily on hot water bath canning for jams and butters. Suzanne Williams of UGA Colquitt County Extension Service spoke of the different types of equipment necessary for ease of canning, Students then proceeded to a kitchen to start the process of peeling and chopping up apples to render down to butter consistency. Frozen strawberries were used, instead of fresh since fresh berries are out of season, to make jam. Jam is made using the pulp of the fruit versus jelly, which is made by cooking the fruit and then straining and separating the juice from the fruit.

There were some students who had never made these homemade products and thus learned a lot. To some others, they attended in hoping to take away a nugget of information. Everyone agreed that homemade butters and jams are far superior in taste to store bought products. The advantage to this is that you, as a consumer, know exactly what is in the product you cook.

Everyone enjoyed the workshop and meeting new friends. They especially enjoyed eating the cooked products afterwards. Hot out-of-the-oven biscuits were served with the leftover product that was not jarred and sealed. Hopefully, more workshops will be presented to the community soon.