I've just started bottling. There's wonderful blackberries in the garden, and I've filled the little icebox in the fridge. I don't have a freezer at the moment, as my old fridge freezer died and when I move house I'm getting my Dad's old freezer.

It's been difficult finding instructions, as some books seem to assume knowledge and others don't mention it at all. I remember my Mum doing bottling in both Kilner jars and with something called Porosan, but I've managed to find some French jars with clip fastening.

I've noticed in the first batch the berries shrank and floated, and looked like a waste of space, so I topped up and repeated the water bath. The second lot I partly cooked first and then topped up in the jar before the bath.

I have also bottled some Opal plums with the left over blackberry flavoured syrup.

Three jars left.

Penny