Store Garden Vegetable Roots: Getting the most out of a Root Cellar

No two home root cellars function the same. You’ll have to learn about yours through trial and error. You’ll know better than anyone else which crops will keep a long time in your root cellar and which ones won’t.

Never put anything directly on the floor because vegetables need air circulation from all sides. If you set them on the floor, they will become moist underneath and start to rot much sooner. Set your boxes, barrels, and baskets on boards on the floor so air can circulate under them.

It is a mistake to store diseased or bruised fruits and vegetables. They certainly won’t improve in storage. In fact, they will do you more good in the compost pile than in the root cellar. Keep them apart from the ones that you intend to store all winter, and use them first, because they won’t last.

For crops to store well, the relative humidity should be above 60 percent. In a dry root cellar you can increase humidity with a small humidifier, or by spreading moist sawdust on the floor of the root cellar and wetting it down from time to time.

If the humidity is too high, you’ll have to find a way to bring in dry air, or use a dehumidifier.

Don’t expect every vegetable you put in the root cellar to keep forever. Check them periodically. If some start to deteriorate, eat the ones you can and throw the rest onto the compost pile. By the time some of your crops start to deteriorate—squash, for instance—your freezer will probably be partially empty. Cut away the rotting areas, cook the rest and freeze it. After all, the fuller your freezer, the less it costs to run it.

If you put canned vegetables in the root cellar, use them within 6 or 8 months. In a root cellar with high humidity, the metal caps and jar lids may rust. Keep an eye on them and use them promptly.

In the root cellar, your greatest enemies are rodents. In the country, mice do their best to come indoors when the weather starts turning cold. The basement is a convenient and safe place where humans rarely bother them. Secure your storage area from these hungry critters. When mice are hungry—and winter seems to whet their appetites— they’ll eat anything, and that includes potatoes, cabbage, apples, root crops, squash, and pumpkins.

Keep your vegetable storage area clean. Once a year, remove your storage boxes and baskets for cleaning. Air them in the sun or spray with disinfectant.

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