{"id":9126,"date":"2026-10-03T13:16:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-03T13:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/?page_id=9126"},"modified":"2026-10-03T14:41:39","modified_gmt":"2026-10-03T14:41:39","slug":"root-cellar","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/self-reliance\/root-cellar\/","title":{"rendered":"Root Cellar"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\nNew Here?<\/span>\n

Start Free Today<\/h3>\n

Enroll in the Ministerial Bible Study Series — 66 books, 251 lessons, completely free forever.<\/p>\nEnroll Free →<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Root Cellar<\/h1>

What’s stored where and when to use it, with a storage guide for every crop and warnings when it’s too warm, too cold or too damp.<\/p>

\nIn Storage<\/a>\nStorage Guide<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\nFrom Our Authors<\/span>\n

Meet Our Contributing Authors<\/h3>\n

Read devotionals and Bible studies shared by members of our community.<\/p>\nRead Their Articles →<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n

Your free Root Cellar Tracker<\/h3>

Keep your records in one private place \u2014 free for every registered member. Only you can see your data, and you can download it any time.<\/p>

Create a free account<\/a> Log in<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/div>

What keeps, and where<\/h4>

Crops keep best in one of a few kinds of storage. A cellar or basement corner gives you \u201ccold and moist\u201d; a cool upstairs closet gives you \u201ccool and dry\u201d. Times are typical ranges from extension guides \u2014 good varieties, picked mature and handled gently, keep longest.<\/p><\/div>

Cold and very moist (32\u201340\u00b0F, 90\u201398%)<\/h3>
Crop<\/th>Keeps<\/th>Tips<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Carrots<\/strong><\/td>4\u20136 months<\/td>Twist off the tops. Pack in damp sand or sawdust.<\/td><\/tr>
Beets<\/strong><\/td>3\u20135 months<\/td>Leave an inch of stem. Pack in damp sand.<\/td><\/tr>
Parsnips<\/strong><\/td>2\u20136 months<\/td>Can also stay in the ground under mulch.<\/td><\/tr>
Turnips & rutabagas<\/strong><\/td>4\u20135 months<\/td>Strong smell \u2014 keep away from apples and cabbage.<\/td><\/tr>
Cabbage<\/strong><\/td>3\u20134 months<\/td>Smells strongly; store in an outbuilding or wrap in newspaper.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div>

Cold and moist (32\u201340\u00b0F, 80\u201395%)<\/h3>
Crop<\/th>Keeps<\/th>Tips<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Potatoes<\/strong><\/td>5\u20138 months<\/td>Cure 1\u20132 weeks at 50\u201360\u00b0F first. Keep in the dark so they don\u2019t turn green; colder than 38\u00b0F turns them sweet.<\/td><\/tr>
Apples<\/strong><\/td>2\u20136 months<\/td>Give off ethylene gas \u2014 keep apart from potatoes, carrots and cabbage.<\/td><\/tr>
Pears<\/strong><\/td>2\u20133 months<\/td>Pick mature but hard; ripen a few at a time in the warm.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div>

Cold and dry (32\u201340\u00b0F, 60\u201370%)<\/h3>
Crop<\/th>Keeps<\/th>Tips<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Onions<\/strong><\/td>5\u20138 months<\/td>Cure until the necks are dry. Hang in mesh bags with good air flow.<\/td><\/tr>
Garlic<\/strong><\/td>5\u20137 months<\/td>Cure 2\u20134 weeks. Braids or mesh bags.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div>

Cool and dry (50\u201355\u00b0F, 50\u201370%)<\/h3>
Crop<\/th>Keeps<\/th>Tips<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Winter squash<\/strong><\/td>2\u20136 months<\/td>Cure 10\u201314 days at 80\u201385\u00b0F first (not acorn). Store one layer deep, not on concrete.<\/td><\/tr>
Pumpkins<\/strong><\/td>2\u20133 months<\/td>Cure like squash; keep the stems on.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div>

Cool and moist (55\u201360\u00b0F, 75\u201385%)<\/h3>
Crop<\/th>Keeps<\/th>Tips<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Sweet potatoes<\/strong><\/td>4\u20137 months<\/td>Cure 7\u201310 days at 80\u201385\u00b0F and high humidity. Never below 50\u00b0F.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div>

A few rules<\/h4>
  • Store only sound produce: no cuts, bruises or disease.<\/li>
  • Keep apples and pears away from potatoes, carrots and cabbage \u2014 their ethylene gas makes roots sprout and turn bitter.<\/li>
  • Air flow matters: an inlet low and an outlet high lets you cool the cellar on cold nights.<\/li>
  • Check often and remove anything going soft.<\/li><\/ul>

    \u201cGo to the ant\u2026 Which\u2026 provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.\u201d \u2014 Proverbs 6:6\u20138<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n

    \n\n\t\t\n
      \n\t\t\t <\/ul>\n <\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":9124,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-9126","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9126","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9126"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9126\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9134,"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9126\/revisions\/9134"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9124"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pgamo.com\/ceb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9126"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}