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by Anne Dailey Issue 38 (Oct/Nov 07) [Copyright © 2007, The Valley Table] These days it's nearly impossible to imagine life without the convenience of the modern refrigerator. This most widely used appliance (over 99 percent of American homes have one) hums quietly away in kitchens, offices and dorm rooms, ever-present but out-of-mind. It's easy to forget that electric refrigeration was almost unheard of before the twentieth century, and that before 1940, most homes were still without one. In those pre-refrigeration days, humans relied on another cooling mechanism--the earth--and another tool--the root cellar. Root cellars still can be found on most old farms or homesteads, though they're generally ignored while electricity does the work they once did. Some have become storage areas or wine cellars or children's forts; many have simply caved in and been forgotten. A few are still being used, and modern homesteaders are slowly reclaiming the concept, but this time-tested preservation technique, so integral to agrarian life, is largely history here. The good news is that even if you don't live on a farm (and don't intend to dig a cellar into the side of a hill anytime soon), you can take advantage of the wisdom of the root cellar. If you've ever stored a sack of potatoes in your basement, you're already halfway there. When preserving foods like potatoes, beets, carrots, cabbage and even apples, two main factors need to be considered: temperature and humidity. The goal is a space that can be kept just above freezing (35 degrees to 40 degrees F) and at a high humidity (at least 80 percent). A refrigerator does this, but so does a hole in the ground, and a hole in the ground is free. If you live in a house with a basement, the "hole in the ground" is already dug. Most basements are great places for cold storage, particularly if they're built with a stone or brick foundation, and perfect if at least part of the floor is dirt. Embrace the spiders and the damp--they signify the potential for great cold storage. On an old farm in Saugerties, Samantha Dederick and her husband grow and harvest hay, and maintain a 100-by-100-foot garden that provides nearly all of the couple's food for the year. Dederick relies heavily on her root cellar, located in the stone basement of the main farmhouse, to preserve the bounty of the garden through the winter months. "People's concept of a root cellar is more romantic than the reality," she cautions, "which is the bugs, the cobwebs and the darkness. But it's the only way to store a year's worth of potatoes, apples, onions and cabbage. For us, it makes sense financially, as well. We're on a budget, and with the root cellar, I can store a year's worth of food without using power. My friends think I'm crazy when I pull food out of the basement, but it works for us." A few simple techniques govern Dederick's root cellar: -- Hang onions from the rafters near the furnace, or another place that's a bit more warm and dry. -- Store potatoes on the floor, preferably in a crate or cage "to keep the critters out." -- Cabbage, kohlrabi, carrots and beets should be packed in peat moss in crates or barrels. (Sawdust or sand will work, as well.) -- Always keep apples separate from other foods, especially potatoes--they give off a gas that will make the potatoes and other vegetables sprout. -- Cold cellars are a great place to store canned goods like pickles. Stone shelves line the walls in Dederick's cellar, but a wooden bookshelf against the wall will serve the same purpose. If a section of your basement is sitting unused, try to gauge the temperature and humidity, and consider buying some potatoes or carrots in bulk. Farmers know what they're doing, so talk to them when you buy produce, and get their suggestions on storing the vegetables and how to best utilize your space. For those who are more daring, Dederick suggests digging a hole three to four feet deep, lining it with hay, packing in the vegetables, and covering it over with more hay, dirt, and a tarp. A simple Internet search turns up a tip for burying an old refrigerator, backside down, in the ground, using the shelves as separators for the various foods you want to store. You'll also discover homesteaders who have set culvert piping into a hillside, and others who bury large barrels outside their back door. Root cellars tend to show the ingenuity of the individual, and can be as simple or complex as you like. Start small, with a corner of your basement. Before you know it, you might find yourself tunneling into the ground, inspired by the power of the earth to preserve her own bounty--for free. |
