Had to Pick and Pressure Can Carrots Due to Varments

Pile of Raw Carrots

5 1/2 Quarts of Pressure Canned Carrots

Those darn varments!

Something takes bites out of my best root vegetables preventing me from leaving them in the ground if I want to salvage any harvest at all. This happened last year as well. (Eventually, we'll fence our garden; but for now, I've been harvesting at the first sign of varment bites which is earlier than I otherwise would...)

Because I harvested early, the carrots were not optimal. I could have tried preserving them in damp sand or damp sawdust, but given that it's only mid-July and not late fall, I decided to cold pack pressure can. I ended up with 5 1/2 quarts which is better than nothing but...

I also re-planted the varment prone beet, carrot, and turnip crops this weekend in the hopes that I can get another harvest before the end of growing season and am fairly confident that I will.