The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Smallholding => Techniques and skills => Topic started by: DenisCooper on March 22, 2020, 06:57:22 pm
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Hi,
I’ve just seen in one of my magazines about root cellars. I haven’t seen or heard of these before but it looks like it could be an interesting project to to help keep root crops fresher for longer, and with all this extra time at home at the minute it might be worth looking at.
I do already have a cellar in the house which isn’t really used yet, not sure if this works in the same way.
Has anyone built one of these before?
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What were the magazine's instructions for how to build a root cellar?
Our house is on solid rock, so no cellar, but one would be very useful for storing root veg and apples. Currently we store ours in the scullery which is far from perfect.
My inlaws house had a huge cellar, which was full of a rather good train layout! My parents stored the apples in what had been the 'dunny' or 'outhouse' before we lived there. There was still an old Elsan sitting inside :eyelashes:
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Yes, plastic buckets, lined and covered with dense wire mesh (rats/mice) and filled with sand, vegetables layered without touching each other. Works but things like carrots, parsnips etc will start growing again and they will still loose moisture.
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We're on solid clay with a high water table, not ideal for a root cellar. Instead, I built a stud walled room in the barn clad with some 4" celotex left over from a building project. the concrete floor helps keep it cool and, while it's not as cool or stable as a proper root cellar, it makes for a decent pantry.