Check out a food dehydrator!

You can borrow this food dehydrator to preserve summer's bounty for the winter months, now at the Manchester District Library!

Is your garden producing more than you can handle, but you don’t want to let any of your hard work go to waste? Check out the Manchester District Library’s dehydrator and preserve summer’s bounty for the long Michigan winter!

Dehydrators can be used for many different purposes beyond the standard fruit leathers. Dry fresh herbs. Make your own dried tomatoes and avoid the high cost of store-bought. Soak raw nuts to sprout them and unlock their full nutrition, then dry them in the dehydrator. Make raw- and paleo-diet-friendly crackers. Dry summer flowers to display year-round. You can even make fire starters by drying coffee grounds in a dehydrator. And, when hunting season rolls around, use the dehydrator to make your own jerky!

You can take advantage of all a dehydrator has to offer by stopping by the Manchester District Library at 912 City Road.

For as little as $1 a month, you can keep Manchester-focused news coverage alive.

by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.