Mark and Carol's Great Pear Canning Experiment

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2024-12-14 09:00:13

The house we live in has a pear tree in front. Last year (our first in the house), it made almost no pears. We thought about putting a partridge in it at Christmas time, figuring it was ornamental rather than functional.

This year, however, it made an enormous number of pears. Go figure. The weather this year doesn't seem that different from last year. I guess it was saving up. We decided it would be a crime to waste all those pears, and that we should can them.

Unfortunately, neither one of us had ever canned anything in our lives. We called our friends Jim and Sindi who grow fruit themselves, and they loaned us: A device for picking the pears, which consists of an old surveying pole with a cut-open milk jug taped to the end. The pole telescopes, which made it easier to get in the car. Mark modified the milk jug slightly by taping an old knife blade from a mat cutter on the corner opposite the pole. A large pot and lid. A whole bunch of mason jars. We went to Meijer's and bought lids for the jars and a caddy thing which holds seven jars and fits in the bottom of the big pot. Then we went home and began.

Mark began picking pears while Carol searched for recipes and instructions on the net. It took a bit to get the hang of the pole, but once mastered it was very effective.