Food dehydration is one of the easiest and cheapest methods of food preservation. It lets you extend the shelf-life of extra produce after an abundant harvest without using preservatives or chucking them in the refrigerator. Plus, dried, nutrient-dense foods are a key part of any prepper’s stockpile, as previously noted. Here Zoey Sky, NaturalNews.com, reflects on how to store vegetables if you do not have a root cellar:

“Having a home garden is a must for many preppers and homesteaders, especially if you want to make sure that you family only eats fresh fruits and vegetables grown without any harmful pesticides.

But what if you have excess produce and no root cellar for storage? If you’re looking for storage options for your excess harvest, check out the three options detailed below. (h/t to ThePrairieHomestead.com)

How to store your harvest if you don’t have a root cellar

Don’t worry if you don’t have a root cellar. While having one is a great idea, not all vegetables suit a root cellar or long-term storage.

If you grow vegetables like cucumbers, green beans, or tomatoes in your home garden, these crops should be canned, fermented, or frozen.

Meanwhile, root crops like beets, carrots, parsnips and potatoes are best stored in root cellars or cold storage. You can grow a lot of these vegetables and they will keep for several months if stored properly.

Here are some of the vegetables that you should store in a root cellar:

• Beets
• Cabbages
• Carrots
• Garlic
• Onions
• Parsnips
• Potatoes
• Pumpkins
• Sweet potatoes
• Winter squash

Remember that each type of vegetable comes with its own set of instructions for pre-storage preparation.

Even if you don’t have a root cellar, you can store vegetables by mimicking a root cellar environment. All you need is a room or container that is cold, dark and humid.

While different vegetables have specific storage requirements, one thing you need to remember as a beginner is: The colder the better.

Just make sure the room isn’t too cold that your vegetables freeze. This is bad because things that are frozen usually become mushy once they thaw out. You can avoid this by keeping the temperature right above 32 F, with some humidity (if possible).

Once you pull vegetables from the garden, they are still alive for a time. As vegetables age, they start to lose some of their moisture.

Keeping vegetables in a humid environment helps slow that moisture loss and keeps them fresher longer.

How to create a root cellar environment for potatoes and onions

Both potatoes and onions require some air circulation because they rot and get moldy very quickly.

When storing potatoes, keep them in cardboard boxes. Place a layer of newspaper between each row of potatoes, then completely close the cardboard box.

Store your box of potatoes in a part of your basement that is very dark. Remember that if potatoes get exposed to light, they will start to sprout.”

Read More … Article Source: https://www.naturalnews.com/2021-09-30-tips-how-store-vegetables-without-root-cellar.html

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