How My Garden Grows: Preserving Seed Packets

Do you happen to have a FoodSaver FoodVac loitering around in your kitchen? One that has the accessory tubing? Like rarely if ever use said food vac? And do you also have a tendency to toss half-used packets of seeds into your junk drawer/forget about them/throw them away the next year? Oh wait….that might be me……but could you stop that waste and preserve your seeds? Yes!

9 or 10 years ago Kirk bought me a food vac that was used a lot and then not so much (mostly due to the storage containers being polycarbonate so I sent them to Goodwill). But recently Kirk picked me up two items that made me go find the old unit and dust it off. What? Mason jar sealers! He picked us up two: The FoodSaver Regular-Mouth Jar Sealer, which seals normal sized mason jars (the skinny neck ones and the tiny 4-ounce jam jars) and the FoodSaver Wide-Mouth Jar Sealer, for the traditional wide-mouth jars, great for pint and quart sizes!

At the top is a port for the accessory hose many of the food vacs come with. You do need a vac that has that option though – your vac comes with the hose, so don’t lose it!

Flipped over you see it is hollow with a rubber ring:

So what do these sealers do? Pretty simple: fill your glass mason jars with whatever you desire, place a clean/dry lid on top, then the sealer. Attach to the vac and turn on. It pulls the air out and gives an airtight seal. If you are careful when removing the lid you can reuse it a number of times. You don’t need rings either, although I prefer the “clean” look of storing jars with rings on.

Now…as to those seeds. If you store your half-used bags or even unopened bags in mason jars, tucked into a cool pantry, those seeds will be good for years. No moisture, no vermin. It makes it less wasteful if all you need are 6 seeds every years and not have to keep rebuying each time.

PS: You can’t “can” with the sealers (like making jam for example), this is just to extend shelf life of stable foods/and or for the freezer. If you are like me and have a pantry full of mason jars chock full of dried goods, these sealers are so beneficial! Especially with dehydrated vegetables and fruits.

~Sarah