UMaine Extension offers Tips for Using Maine Fruits and Vegetables Available in June

We all look forward to the signs of spring after a long cold Maine winter. Strawberries are definitely one of those spring harbingers we crave.

Freezing berries in season and making your own low-sugar jams and jellies are simple, easy ways to increase your access to a year-round supply of local foods, cut back on sugar and reduce your grocery bill.

Kathy Savoie, UMaine Extension educator, cautions that you should get up-to-date information if you are planning on canning food. Over the years, there have been changes in scientific expertise as well as canning equipment and there is new information on the best methods, canners, jars, and seals to use to ensure a safe result.

Looking for a local food preservation workshop near you to learn more? How about Preserving the Harvest: Strawberry Jam at our UMaine Regional Learning Center in Falmouth (75 Clearwater Dr) on Wednesday June 27th. This hands-on food preservation workshop will teach you the basics of canning and freezing strawberries, including how to use a water bath canner to preserve jam. Learn from the experts. We will provide fresh produce and canning jars. Register online.

Visit extension.umaine.edu to order or download bulletins to fit this season, including June favorites such as Bulletin #4047 Let’s Preserve Strawberries, Bulletin #4039 Let’s Preserve: Jams, Jellies and Spreads, Bulletin #4383 Freezing Fruits and Bulletin #4256 Vegetables and Fruits for Health: Peas.

Support your local farmer by shopping at a farmers’ market

The vibrant farmers’ market scene in Maine offers shoppers a fun way to access fresh food from friendly, hard-working farmers. Most home gardeners in Maine try to have peas to harvest by the Fourth of July, but you can add peas to the menu even earlier by going to local farmers markets and vegetable stands. Common types you will find in the market include shell (green) peas as well as edible-pod peas such as snow peas (Chinese pea pods) and sugar-snap peas.

About University of Maine Cooperative Extension: As a trusted resource for over 100 years, University of Maine Cooperative Extension has supported UMaine’s land and sea grant public education role by conducting community-driven, research-based programs in every Maine county. UMaine Extension helps support, sustain and grow the food-based economy. It is the only entity in our state that touches every aspect of the Maine Food System, where policy, research, production, processing, commerce, nutrition, and food security and safety are integral and interrelated. UMaine Extension also conducts the most successful out-of-school youth educational program in Maine through 4-H.

About the University of Maine: The University of Maine, founded in Orono in 1865, is the state’s land grant and sea grant university. As Maine’s flagship public university, UMaine has a statewide mission of teaching, research and economic development, and community service. UMaine is among the most comprehensive higher education institutions in the Northeast and attracts students from Maine and 49 other states, and 67 countries. It currently enrolls 11,240 total undergraduate and graduate students who can directly participate in groundbreaking research working with world-class scholars. The University of Maine offers 35 doctoral programs and master’s degrees in 85 fields; more than 90 undergraduate majors and academic programs; and one of the oldest and most prestigious honors programs in the U.S. The university promotes environmental stewardship, with substantial efforts campus wide aimed at conserving energy, recycling and adhering to green building standards in new construction. For more information about UMaine, visit umaine.edu