What to Do with Those Extra Vegetables in Your Summer Garden

During the summer months, many families spend time doing a bit of gardening. It really helps to save money during the summer time if you grow your own vegetables, or fruit. Towards the end of summer the weather may start change and you will have to finish picking the leftover vegetables that you have. The one thing you don't want to do is allow those vegetables to go to waste. Below you will find a list of ideas on what you can do with the extra vegetables left in you your garden.

Freeze them

One thing that I love to do with extra vegetables left over, and the end of the season is to bag them up in large zip lock bags. You can place them in the freezer and be sure to put the date on them. For example if you had carrots, or spinach, you can slice them up, and place them in the freezer to save for soup, or stews during the Fall, and Winter months.

Make tomatoes into a sauce

If you spend the summer growing tomatoes during the summer months, you can make plenty of batches of fresh tomato sauce and freeze it. You can make your tomato sauce the normal way you would and then allow it to cool off. Once it is cool divide it up into storage bags and put it away.

Make a nice gift basket

If you have an event coming up, or even if you just want to do something nice for someone a vegetable gift basket will really make a great gift. Most will really appreciate getting a gift of fresh vegetables at the end of summer. This way you will not have to worry about the vegetables rotting, and going to waste.

Sell them

Depending on where you live, you may be able to donate them to your local fruit, and vegetable store. Some of these locations may be willing to take what you have left at the end of summer for a small fee. Wouldn't it be nice to get a few extra dollars spending money for your leftover vegetables?

Donate them

There are plenty of food banks, and a variety of shelters that will be more than help pay to accept any fresh vegetables that you are willing to donate. This will give those who are less fortunate the opportunity to enjoy some, real home grown vegetables with no added chemicals.