• Begin by filling your water bath canner ¾ of the way full and placing on high heat. Your goal is to bring the water to a soft, rolling boil.
• While water is coming to a boil, begin sterilizing your jars in boiling water or wash them thoroughly in hot water.
• Wash cucumbers well. Cut them to the desired shape (spears or chips) or chop them in the processor (for dill relish).
  
• Pack cucumbers into jars tightly.
  

Prepare Brine

• Prepare the brine by bringing vinegar, water, sugar, and salt to a boil.
• Mix the seasonings together then add to hot brine or add right into jars. (I prefer to add herbs/seasonings directly into jars rather than into the brine to equally distribute them versus them settling at the bottom of the brine. It is a bit more work but yields better outcome.)
• Pour brine into jars packed with cucumbers. Be sure to cover the cucumbers completely but leave about ½ inch headspace between the liquid and the top of the jar.
• Place lids on the jars and screw the rings on tightly.
• By now your canner water should be at a nice rolling boil. Add jars in one at a time, be careful not to splash yourself with the hot water. Jars should be placed in a circular pattern around the canner with one or two jars in the center of the circle.
• Adjust water level to cover the jars completely by at least one inch. This means you may need to add or eliminate some of the water in your canner. If you need to subtract water the best way is to remove it with a cup or container instead of lifting the heavy canner or having to remove jars you have already placed.
• Place the lid on and allow water to come back to a steady, rolling boil.
• As soon as boiling has begun processing time starts. Pint jars are processed for 10 minutes in the canner. Quart jars are processed for 15 minutes. If you have a mixed batch, quarts and pints, processing everything for 15 minutes is best.
• After processing time has ended allow cans to cool in the canner or lift them out using tongs or a jar lifter. Allow to cool and seal for 24 hours then check seals by tapping the center of the jar lid. If the lid pops back up after pressing the lid did not seal and jars should be placed in the refrigerator to be used within 2 months.
• If the lids have sealed they can be stored and used as needed. Use within one year for best freshness.