What a difference a recession makes.

Home canning to preserve food, which just a few years ago was being described as a dying art, has found new life, thanks to a resurgence in gardening, home cooking and family economizing.

Two years ago, Marcia Kroft, a program assistant with the Ohio State University Extension in Medina County, reported that the number of questions her office got concerning canning had dwindled to next to nothing. This year, the calls just keep coming, she said.

"We've had over 30 canning calls already and we're only halfway through the season really," she said. That doesn't include the folks who have stopped by the office seeking information.

"I think it's definitely coming back," Kroft said, "I think more people actually have gardens this year than have had gardens in a long time."

The country's leading maker of canning supplies agrees.

Brenda Schmidt of Jarden Home Brands, the Indiana company that makes Ball and Kerr canning jars and other supplies for home preservation, said retail sales increased by 30 percent in 2008 over 2007 and have increased another 30 percent so far this year over 2008.

"We have found that many people planted vegetable gardens or utilized locally grown produce, and now — canning season — they are fresh-preserving those products for year-round use and as a way to cut back on their grocery bills," she said.

However, the company's research shows that the recession is driving only part of the sales increase. The rest is due to the continuing interest in locally grown foods and a desire to control one's food sources.

"Canning allows you to create the foods you want on the terms that you want. You can control all of it," Schmidt said.

September is high time for canning, as nearly all produce is available, including the traditional favorites, peaches and tomatoes.

But if you've never put up food before, getting started can be a daunting task.

Beth Knorr, market manager for the Cuyahoga Valley Countryside Conservancy, said tomatoes were selected for the conservancy's canning classes because they are one of the most popular items. Knorr also has fielded a lot of phone calls on the subject this year. "People are just really hungry for this kind of information now," she said.

Unlike cooking, you can't preserve food without a specific recipe and special equipment.

Judy Harrold, manager of consumer affairs for Jarden, said the best thing novice canners can do is to find a reliable source and read up on how it is done. Books and Web sites abound with instructions and videos to watch on canning techniques, including processing time guides and instructions for sterilizing jars and lids.

Canning involves processing jars at temperatures high enough to kill bacteria, yeast and mold, which can contaminate food. Canning recipes contain processing time guidelines, which should be followed carefully. It's important to have up-to-date information — Kroft said Grandma's 50-year-old recipe for canning tomatoes isn't the one you want to use today. Guidelines change over time because pH levels of fruits and vegetables vary as hybrids are produced.

Harrold said even the soil a food is grown in can affect how it will react to home-canning methods. Scientific research is constantly being updated to provide the best information to prevent spoilage.

While information is readily available, equipment requires some investment.

Home preserving requires a canner — a large pot used to process jars of fruits, vegetables or meats. There are two kinds, boiling water and pressure. Water canners run in the $40 to $65 range, while pressure canners are typically $75 to $150 or higher.

Boiling water canners, which reach a temperature of 212 degrees, are used for most fruits and high-acid foods, like pickles and tomatoes. Pressure canners use steam to process foods to 240 degrees, which is necessary for canning low-acid foods, including most vegetables and all meats, and for canning at high altitudes.

Harrold said a lot of cooks are afraid to use pressure canners out of fear that they will explode. That's rarely a problem, as long as a canner is used properly. "I've never blown up my house. I've never blown up our test kitchen," she said.

Other equipment needed includes glass canning jars, two-piece caps with lids and rings, a jar lifter and a funnel, as well as measuring cups, spoons and other typical kitchen equipment.

For those who don't want to try canning, there's always the freezer. Storing produce in the freezer is less complicated than canning and works just as well for most foods, Kroft said.

Harrold said there are few foods that can't be frozen. She recommends blanching fruits and vegetables putting them in the freezer — submerging in boiling water for two to three minutes, then shocking them in a bath of ice water for two or three minutes more.

Not only does blanching help save the bright colors of fresh produce, but it also stops enzyme action so that the food won't continue to decompose and will emerge from the freezer with the same texture and flavor as when it went in.

Harrold's best advice to novice canners: Don't be afraid.

"Food preservation is to me as simple as preparing a meal. It's taking meal preparation one step beyond serving, that is to put it in the jars and process them," she said.

Here are some easy recipes for home preserving.

8 lbs. pickling cucumbers½ cup pickling salt3½ cups granulated sugar3 tbsp. mustard seeds2 tbsp. celery seeds1 tsp. curry powder7 cups white vinegarOn Day 1, scrub the cucumbers gently under running water. Cut crosswise into eighth-inch slices, trimming off an eighth-inch from each end.In a large bowl, layer cucumbers and salt, using about one-quarter of each per layer. Add cold water to cover about 1 inch. Place a plate on top to weigh down cucumbers. Cover and let stand at a cool room temperature for at least 8 hours or up to 18 hours.On Day 2, prepare a boiling-water canner, jars and lids.In a colander, working in batches, drain cucumbers and rinse well. Drain again and set aside.In a large pot, combine sugar, mustard seeds, celery seeds, curry powder and vinegar. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to medium-high. Add cucumbers and return to a boil, pressing occasionally to immerse cucumbers in liquid. Remove from heat.Using a slotted spoon, pack cucumbers into hot jars, leaving 1 inch head space. Pour in hot pickling liquid, leaving a half-inch head space. Remove air bubbles and adjust head space as necessary by adding hot pickling liquid. Wipe rim and place hot lid disc on jar. Screw band down until fingertip-tight.Place jars in canner and return to a boil. Process for 10 minutes. Turn off heat, remove canner lid and let jars stand in water for 5 minutes. Transfer jars to a towel-lined surface and let stand for 24 hours. Check lids and refrigerate any jars that are not sealed.Makes about 5 quarts.Notes: Don't pack pickles too tightly. Make sure there's enough room for liquid — that's where the flavor comes from. You may get 4 full quarts and one partial one. Prepare a pint jar as well, in case you don't have enough for the 5th full quart.From "The Complete Book of Pickling" by Jennifer MacKenzie.

2½ to 3½ lbs. ripe tomatoes (about 8 to 11 medium) per quartWaterBottled lemon juice or citric acidSalt, optionalGlass preserving jars with lids and bandsPrepare boiling water canner. Heat jars and lids in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil. Set bands aside.Wash tomatoes. Dip in boiling water 30 to 60 seconds. Immediately dip in cold water. Slip off skins. Trim away any green areas and cut out core. Leave tomatoes whole or cut into halves or quarters.Place tomatoes in a large sauce pot. Add water to cover. Bring to a boil and boil gently 5 minutes, stirring to prevent sticking.Add 2 tablespoons bottled lemon juice or half a teaspoon citric acid to each hot quart jar. Add 1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice or a quarter-teaspoon citric acid to each hot pint jar.Pack hot tomatoes into hot jars leaving a half-inch head space. Ladle hot cooking liquid over tomatoes leaving a half-inch head space. Add 1 teaspoon salt to each quart jar, half a teaspoon to each pint jar, if desired.Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim. Center hot lid on jar. Apply band and adjust until fit is fingertip tight.Process filled jars in a boiling-water canner 40 minutes for pints and 45 minutes for quarts, adjusting for altitude if necessary.Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.From www.freshpreserving.com.

8 cups cranberries4 cups sugar4 cups waterWash cranberries, drain. Combine sugar and water in a large sauce pot. Boil 5 minutes. Add cranberries. Continue boiling, without stirring, until skins burst. Ladle hot sauce into hot jars, leaving a quarter-inch of headspace. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 15 minutes in a boiling-water canner.Makes about 6 pints.From "The Ball Blue Book of Preserving."

4 lbs. peaches (about 8 large), peeled, pitted and chopped5 cups sugar2 tbsp. lemon juice½ tsp. ground nutmeg½ tsp. ground cinnamonPlace all the ingredients in a heavy, 8-quart saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, to dissolve the sugar.Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and boil until the mixture reaches 220 degrees on a cooking thermometer.Ladle into sterile jars, allowing a quarter-inch of head space. Cap and seal.Process for 15 minutes in a boiling-water canner. Adjust for altitude if necessary. (Altitudes higher than 1,000 feet require additional processing time.)Makes 5 half-pint jars.From "The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest" by Carol W. Costenbader.