Q and A: freezing then canning beans, Hickory King corn, and duck manure fertilizer

Freezing then canning beans

We garden in five 4×8 raised beds in our small backyard and this year we are trying bush beans in one bed. The problem is getting enough beans at one time to make it viable to can. About every three days we pick enough beans to fill about a pint, we have been blanching and freezing these but wonder if once we have enough frozen could we then defrost and can them all at once?

It’s been a great spring so far as we have canned 35 pints of your Amish coleslaw recipe from the 5 head of cabbage that we grew. We froze about a half gallon of snap peas before they gave out, 8 pints of beets were canned, and so far we are up to 25 pints of pickles with no end in sight. The bell peppers are already full the 3 Roma’s are starting to fill up along with the 1 Cherokee purple, and the 4 jalapeño have produced over 60 good sized peppers so far.

Ken Winningham
Killeen, Texas

Yes, you can freeze the beans and then quickly thaw and can them up all at one batch. They won’t be quite as good as if canned fresh, but sure better than store beans. It sounds like you’ve been busy! We’re barely in the PLANTING mode up here and it’s hard to believe you’re already harvesting. — Jackie

Hickory King corn

We have canned white Hickory King corn for hominy in the past (a long while back) and want to carry on a old family tradition, but cannot seem to find any Hickory King corn to can. Yellow Dent is just not the same. Do you know of any place we can buy it? We live in north Texas, and would like to buy at least a 50 lb. bag or bucket of it. It needs to be for human consumption.

Wm. Scarborough
Sherman, Texas

Shumway’s sells White Hickory seed corn. I don’t know if it is treated but I’d call and ask. Maybe they’d let you know their seed source so you could buy some to can, cheaper than seed corn? Their phone number is: 1-800-342-9461. Any readers out there know where they can get some more-local White Hickory corn? — Jackie

Duck manure fertilizer

We keep a small pool for our ducks which we drain by a side valve and hose. Is it safe to put this soiled water directly in our vegetable garden? I worry it could make us sick but it seems like such a waste not to use for fertilizer.

Johanna Hill
Arcanum, Ohio

Duck manure in the water makes excellent fertilizer. I wouldn’t put it on leaf crops or where rain may splash it up onto pepper, tomatoes, etc. But it’s fine for crops like corn or squash. Bucket away! — Jackie