Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[Harvey Ussery <huboxwood@earthlink.net>]

> Finally, does anyone know anything about root cellar type storage in the
> South?  My crawl space is about 74 degrees now (outside highs are the upper
> 90's) which is where I am storing the surplus potatoes and winter squash
> from this year's garden.  But that temperature is too warm (according to
> the books).  Any ideas how I could create a cooler space without a
> refrigeration device?

I store potatoes and sweet potatoes in my basement. Unlike Art, I get 
excellent results with both. (Maybe the difference is in the warmth and 
humidity in our respective climates--I'm in northern VA, zone 6b).

Winter squashes, however, are not a candidate for root cellar type 
storage--too humid.

Here is a quote from an article I wrote "Achieving Food Independence on 
the Modern Homestead." (Supposedly it is going to be published in 
Countryside Magazine, so please consider it copyrighted material.)

*********************

Produce storage

Because we think of fall as the season of harvest par excellence, let's 
think about how best to keep that harvest---i.e., preserving and storing 
the food we have grown. Perhaps most people think first of canning and 
freezing when they think of preserving the garden's bounty, but for the 
most part, neither of those is my choice. I want to eat fresh twelve 
months of the year! Canning and freezing are home equivalents to 
processed supermarket foods---and I am not especially interested in 
seeing processed foods on my table. What strategies are available for 
eating fresh at the table when there is no longer anything to harvest in 
the garden?

There are first of all a number of crops that store well naturally, in 
conditions that can be produced in most households. Indeed, onions, 
garlic, shallots, and winter squash keep well in cool room temperature 
in the living space of the house. Potatoes and sweet potatoes store well 
in the basement or cellar, if available. Of course, you can make a "root 
cellar" for all sorts of natural storage of roots, tubers, even green 
vegetables such as cabbages, Chinese cabbages, and heading chicories. 
But even without a root cellar, it is easy to store many of the common 
vegetables. For example, my preferred method of storage for fall carrots 
is simply to leave them in the ground, and cover with a mulch deep 
enough to prevent freezing. Other root crops such as rutabagas, beets, 
and winter radishes can be stored the same way. I love going out to the 
garden in the dead of winter, kicking aside the mulch and maybe a layer 
of snow or ice, and digging the carrots hiding below. The latest I ever 
dug a carrot stored under mulch was April 1, and it was even sweeter 
than the previous fall! The mulch is necessary because carrots turn to 
mush if they freeze. However, there are a few root crops such as 
parsnips which can freeze and thaw without ill effect. Of course, it is 
not possible to dig them when the ground is frozen. However, they offer 
welcome fresh eating in the late winter, long before the first spring 
crops are ready.

Another option for storage of the dense-fleshed root crops---carrots, 
beets, winter radishes, etc.---is in an underground pit. Yes, that's 
right---just a hole in the ground, what could be simpler? Dig the hole 
any size you need, and at least 18 up to 24 inches deep. Then place your 
just-harvested roots inside, cover with a piece of plywood or a plastic 
sheet to shed rainwater, and protect from freezing with bales of straw. 
The temperature in the storage pit stays quite cold but never freezes, 
and the humidity stays high---perfect conditions for these root 
vegetables. They keep far better there than in a refrigerator, which is 
dehydrating. Cabbages also store quite well in such a cold storage pit.

--
Harvey in northern Va
www.themodernhomestead.us