Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1918-08-19
STORAGE OF VEGETABLES.
Coed Facilities Exist in Most Homes
Basement May be Used.


-etables the housewife should carefully
consider the possibility of saving
time, strength, and expense by the use
of storage pits or root cellars.
A half-acre garden will produce far
more vegetables than the average
family can consume during the sum-
mer. Only small portion of the
garden products are used as they
reach maturity. Beets, late cabbage,
carrots, celery, onions, parsnips, pota-
toes, sweet potatoes, satisfy and
turnpis may all be stored for winter
use.
The successful storage of vegetables
is not at all difficult; in act, good
storage facilities already exist in
most homes, it being only necessary
to make use Of the cellar, the attic,
a large closet, or other parts of the
dwelling, depending upon the char
acter Of the product to be stored.
Many cellars are not we'll suited for
this because of poor insulation or lack
of ventilation. Cellars containing a
funace or heating the dwelling usu-
ally are too warm and too dry or
the storage of root crops. It is often
possible, however, to partition off a
room either in one corner CT at the
end of The cellar where the tempera-
ture may be controlled by means Of
outside windows.
Outdoor Storage Cellars.
Outdoor ctorage cellars or caves
are excellent for the storage OF many
vegetables. They are particularly
desirable or the farm, as they afford
convenient and inexpensive storage
facilities for surplus vegetable crops
that otherwise may be lost. They
possess all the advantages of the
storage room in the basement and
are superior in many respects. The
outdoor storage cellar can be main
tanned at a uniform temperature over
q long period. 1t is possible to
keep the cellar cool and quickly to
reduce the temperature of the stored
products to the desired point for safe
storage By opening the door during
the night and closeing it in the morn
ing before the air becomes warm. All
ventilators should likewise be kept
tightly until the outside air is again
cooler than that within the cellar,
when they should be opened, unless
the outside temperature is so low as
to be dangerous. This safeguards
the product and adds to the efficiency
of the storage chamber. Vegetables
can be more conveniently placed in
such cellar than IN the storage
room in the basement of dwelling.
When the chief use OF the outdoor
storage cellar is for storing turnips,
beets, carrots, and other root crops
commonly used as stock food. it
should be located near the stable.
where the material will be convenient
for winter breeding. When it is to
be used for vegetables for the table
the cellar should be accessible from
the kitchen at all times. IF apples
or other fruits are to be stored in an
outdoor storage cellar it is desirable
to have a accompaniment cellar,
one for vegetables and one for ap-
pies, with aventilating apparatus in
each compartment.
Small Pits Better Than Large Ones.
Outdoor banks or pits are used
very generally for keeping vegetables.
The conical pit is used commonly for
such vegetables as potatoes, carrots,
beets, turnirs. satisfy, parsnips and
heads of cabbage.
Vegetables keep very well in such
pits, but it is difficult to get them
out in cold weather. so that when a
pit is opend it is desirable to remove
its entire contnets at once. For this
reason it is advisable to construct
secvral small pits rather than one
large one. and instead of storing each
crop in a pit by itself it is better to
place small quantity Of several
kinds OF vegetables in the same pit,
SO that il will be necessary 70 open
only one oank to get supply of all
Of them. In storing. several crops in
the same bank it is desirable to sep
arate them with straw, leaves. or
other material. The vegetables from
fhe small pit may be placed temper
ar!ly in the storage room in the base
ment, where they vii! be easily Access
si5le as nseaed for the table.