Popular ways to store carrots in the cellar

Carrots begin to be harvested in the fall and are stored until the weather warms up. However, it is possible to prevent spoilage of vegetables only if certain conditions are met.

It is not enough to put the carrots in the cellar; you need to properly prepare both the root crops themselves and the room in which they will winter.

About, how to store carrots in the cellar, so as not to lose the harvest, read the article.

Is the underground or basement suitable for storage until spring?

A clean and well-ventilated cellar is the optimal place to store carrots. It has enough space to accommodate the entire crop.

Optimal temperature and humidity

Carrots will not freeze and germinate if stored at 0...+2 degrees. An increase and decrease in temperature within 1-2 degrees is not critical.

It is important not to allow constant changes. A one-time jump is not terrible, but regular changes will lead to the fact that vegetables will begin to rot, sprout or dry out.

Air humidity should remain within 95%. The root crop consists of 90% water, so under unsuitable conditions it loses it very quickly.

If you notice that vegetables are starting to dry out, you need to increase the humidity in the room. To measure this indicator, a hygrometer is used. Read more about the temperature conditions for storing carrots here.

Preparation

Preparing carrots for storage should begin in the spring, when choosing seeds for planting. About a month before harvest, you need to start processing the premises.. When the cellar is ready, you can collect vegetables, which also require some processing.

Read more about preparing carrots Here.

Variety selection

Late-ripening and mid-ripening varieties that are harvested in the second half of autumn are suitable for storage. Such root vegetables can remain fresh for 7-10 months.

You need to choose the following seeds for planting:

• Queen of Autumn;
• Flaccoro;
• Dolyanka;
• Samson;
• Chance;
• Nantes;
• Vitamin;
• Moscow winter, etc.

You cannot mix different varieties with each other. They must be stored separately. First of all, mid-ripening carrots are used, and then late-ripening carrots. The best varieties of carrots for storage are described in this article.

How to properly prepare vegetables?

If you put a crop that has not undergone preliminary preparation into the cellar, it will quickly deteriorate. To keep carrots fresh for as long as possible, a number of conditions must be met:

1. Proceed to dig carrots needed in dry, sunny weather. When removing root crops from the ground, act carefully, trying not to damage them with a shovel.
2. The dug carrots are laid out on the bed for initial drying. After 2 hours, carefully shake off the remaining soil, but there is no need to be too zealous.
3. Cutting off the tops almost under the growth point, leaving a process up to 2 mm long. Use a sharp knife to remove greens.
4. Place vegetables for temporary storage in a warm room, such as a pantry. After 5-7 days, you can assess their condition and sort out rotten and spoiled fruits.
5. After preparation is completed, the vegetables can be lowered into the basement.

Room

Proper preparation of the cellar is the key to successful storage of carrots. Action plan:

1. Ventilate the room. To do this, the cellar is left open for 7-14 days. There should be no foreign odors in it.
2. Provide access to fresh air. This is only possible if there is well-functioning ventilation.
3. Disinfect all surfaces. The walls must be treated with a 2% bleach solution, which prevents the proliferation of microorganisms.
4. Whitewash the walls. Whitewashing begins 14 days after disinfection. For 1 sq. m. it takes about 0.5 liters of solution.
5. Treat storage containers. There should be no signs of mold growth. It is recommended to place the boxes in the sun to ensure additional drying and disinfection.

Preparatory activities take not a single day. You need to start selling them in advance, about a month before putting the harvest into the cellar.

What's better?

The good thing about a cellar is that you can store crops in it in almost any container. The most popular methods:

1. In boxes (plastic or wooden). The container is filled with any suitable material. It could be sand or dry sawdust, which are sprinkled over vegetables so that they do not come into contact with each other. Shelf life is 7-9 months for sand, up to a year for sawdust.
2. In enamel pans. A prerequisite is the integrity of the container. There should be no chips or rust on it. Pack the vegetables tightly into the pan, placing them in a vertical position.When it is filled to the top, cover it with a paper towel and close it tightly. Without topping, carrots will remain fresh for up to six months.
3. In fabric bags. Sprinkle the root vegetables with any suitable material. You can use onion or garlic peels, which will help retain moisture.

   Fill the bag 1/3 with vegetables, tie it and place it in a suitable place. Shelf life - up to six months.

4. In plastic bags. This is one of the most popular storage methods, since vegetables do not rot, dry out or wither in film. No more than 5 kg of root vegetables should be placed in 1 bag.

   The container is tied, but several holes are first made in it so that condensation does not accumulate inside. During storage, vegetables will release carbon dioxide, which in low concentration helps maintain their freshness.

   If air outflow is not ensured, the level of carbon dioxide will rise to critical levels and the carrots will begin to deteriorate. Bags can be replaced with plastic film. Shelf life is about 5 months.

5. In paper. Each root vegetable is wrapped separately in clean sheets, without any printing or watercolor paint applied. Store carrots in open boxes.

1. Sand. It should be clay, not river. Before filling it is slightly moistened. For 1 bucket take 0.5 liters of water.
2. Coniferous sawdust.
3. Moss.

If all conditions are met, carrots will last in the cellar for six months or more.

What to process?

Most often, carrots are treated with clay before being sent for storage. This prevents the process of its germination and withering. There are two options for using clay: pouring and dipping.

For filling? buckets are filled with clay, which is diluted with water and left for 12 hours.

When the material swells, mix it thoroughly, add water and leave again for a day. The procedure is repeated for 2-3 days. The clay needs to be brought to the consistency of thick sour cream.

The bottom of the boxes in which the vegetables will be placed is covered with film.. Root vegetables are placed in such a way that they do not touch each other. They are filled with clay on top. When this layer dries, carrots are placed on top of it again and filled with clay again. The procedure is repeated as many times as necessary.

The second option is to dip carrots in clay. It should be so thick that it does not drip from the root vegetables. The soaked carrots are dried and placed in boxes. It will not deteriorate, since each specimen will be reliably protected by a dried shell.

Clay is an environmentally friendly material that does not contain impurities harmful to humans.. Its use allows you to increase the shelf life of the crop to 8-10 months. Before eating, vegetables must be thoroughly washed and peeled.

Another option is to use paraffin. Root vegetables need to be dipped into the hot mass. To give them elasticity, you can melt a small amount of beeswax in paraffin.

All of the above methods are safe. Substances contained in paraffin, clay and chalk solution do not penetrate into vegetables. Therefore, after washing and removing the peel, they remain edible.

The best and worst neighbors

Carrots should be stored in a separate container. It cannot be mixed with other root vegetables. However, there may be vegetables nearby such as:

• potato;
• beet;
• kohlrabi;
• onion;
• Jerusalem artichoke;
• radish.

The worst neighbors of carrots are apples, which release substances that promote rapid ripening and spoilage of all vegetables that are located in close proximity.

You can read about storing beets and carrots together Here And here.

Problems and solutions

Problems that you may encounter when storing carrots and how to solve them:

1. Withering. It is necessary to increase the humidity level in the cellar. To do this, you need to take care of proper ventilation. A temporary measure can be spraying water with a spray bottle, or placing buckets of liquid.
2. The appearance of mold on the crop. This happens when there is excess moisture. You can cope with the problem if you put a bag of quicklime in the cellar.
3. Rotting. Why do carrots rot? Most likely, a diseased vegetable got into the container. In this case, the entire crop must be sorted, damaged roots removed and stored again.

Helpful information

Tips to extend the shelf life of vegetables:

1. Before harvesting carrots in the cellar, they should not be peeled. Removing the skin will cause rapid spoilage.
2. Carrots should not be completely cleared of soil, much less wash.
3. The harvest must be sorted regularly, removing spoiled fruits.
4. If vegetables are stored in boxes, then the height of the embankment in them should not exceed 1 m.

Conclusion

Storing carrots in the cellar requires compliance with several conditions. Key points to pay attention to:

• cleanliness of the room,
• maintaining air temperature within 0…+2 degrees,
• proper preparation of vegetables.

Containers and bulk material can be anything.The harvest is best stored in boxes with sand, clay or sawdust.