How to store the root harvest?
I am researching root cellars since I lost a whole bagful of big garden beets. There were too many to fit in my refrigerator and I thought these would keep in my basement - but I was wrong :(
Root crops I grow (or would like to) include beets, potatoes, carrots and parsnips. My two bags of potatoes (so far) are keeping fine in my basement. My carrot harvest did fine in the fridge. I only had two gallon bags of these and there are only a few left now. The parsnips never sprouted :( and I'll try again next year.
I will look up the optimum storage temp for these crops and if there is an inexpensive solution for storage. Please let me know if you have information on this topic!
potatoes (Solanum tuberosum)
I borrowed a copy of Root Cellaring from Belmont Library (not sure if it was actually from Belmont or from the larger network), it was so good I went and bought a copy. They give a ton of different ways to make viable storage, with and without using an actual basement, or using sections, or just plain old outside.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.amazon.com/Root-Cellaring-Natural-Storage-Vegetables/dp/0882667033/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1222222386&sr=8-1
Everything I've read says to bury them in a box of moist sand and keep them in a cool, dark place. I've never tried it though, I'm pretty new to this thing!
ReplyDeleteI see that Gretta has vegetable storage information here. I'll go by this. Looks like my beets should have been in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.
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