Kids, back in the day, were fearless. They did not fight imaginary foes on a screen. There were real places that were dark, smelly, and cold. Grandma would send you down the stairs to the root cellar, that underground storage area for fresh vegetables, fruit, and home-canned goods.
Food storage is more than an underground room, though. Porches, garages, buried boxes, and even in-ground in the garden all qualify. You may think, “the grocery store is one mile away. Why do I need food storage?” How about walking down five steps for fresh carrots, cabbage, potatoes, apples, or squash during the freezing days of January? Summer squash that costs a reasonable amount in September jumps to heavenly heights in January. Your root cellar will help you eat better, save money, lower energy costs, and ease your mind over food insecurity.
Some winter storage is as easy as remembering where you planted. Carrots, Jerusalem artichokes, turnips, beets, radishes, and uncovered kale will patiently wait in the ground with a little help. Garden row storage is as easy as covering your plants with hardware cloth and several inches of mulch (up to a foot deep in cold zones). You can also tent leafy vegetables like Swiss chard or kale, using clear plastic. Add rocks or boards along the edges to stop cold air from coming in.
In pre-refrigerator days, it would not be unusual to see mounds covered with dirt several feet tall around homes. Those mounds (“clamps”) were filled with stored food, then covered with straw or hay and a layer of fluffy dirt. A perforated pipe down the center added ventilation. Clamps hold combinations of produce that can be cooked together. Once opened, a clamp must be used, or rot will ensue. Without electricity, clamps are built to protect from rot, rodents, and wind.
Under the soil, temperatures remain cool and constant. There are other options indoors. Shaded garages provide sheltered storage in cartons, boxes, metal buckets or plastic trays all packed with shavings at the bottom. Your home might offer cool, off-the-beaten-path space. Unused bedrooms, closets, baths, under the stairs, and even attics may have cooler temperatures when shut off from heating sources.
Cold storage requires a temperature and humidity range depending on the produce. Vegetables like pumpkins, winter squash, sweet potatoes, and green tomatoes will wait patiently at 50-60 degrees with 60% humidity. Cool conditions (40-50 degrees) will hold cucumbers, sweet peppers, cantaloupe, watermelons, eggplant and ripe tomatoes (eat sooner rather than later). Higher humidity (85-90%) helps to maintain quality. A cold root cellar (32-40 degrees) will sustain potatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, apples, grapes, pears, carrots, beets, collards, garlic, and onions.
For storage, pick your harvest on a cold day. Choose the best: mature, unbruised and insect-free. All produce needs ventilation. Don’t wash produce prior to storage. Watch for and discard any that are deteriorating.
When you have worked hard in your garden for six months, it would be nice to continue the benefits for several more months. Much of the produce shipped from overseas has been in cold storage for months and months. The difference is that your clamp-full is free!
Julie Silva is a University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener of Tuolumne County.
