Root cellars....

[jen_in_southtexas]

Does anyone have one? Do they serve their purpose well?
I have always wanted to know what it was like to have one. I was searching the internet for root cellars and came across some really neat websites that i thought i would share.
If i made one I wouldnt want anyone to know about it so i would have to somehow conceal the entrance way. I would like to store emergency food in there as well as other emergency items. I cant say i know anyone over here with a root cellar. Maybe more ppl than i know have them and just keep it under wraps for the same reasons i want one.
The majority of the year is pretty warm over here and we dont get much rainfall. I guess we never know how much rain we will be getting.
Please share your thoughts on a root cellar.

-j

http://theepicenter.com/tow1102.html

http://www.earth-house.com/Disaster_Readi/Sanctuaries/Root_Cellars/root_cellars.html

http://waltonfeed.com/old/cellars.html

[Shamrock1121]

I remember my great-uncles root cellar. It looked almost exactly like this one.

http://www.nepanewsletter.com/cellar.html

It was cool enough for my aunt to store eggs, cream, milk and butter. Back then, she sold eggs to our local grocery store (1950's) and milk and cream to the local creamery, and butter to the neighbors.

What concerns me about the viability of one in south Texas (if you live where your name indicates) is the temperature inside the cellar. No fear of it getting too cold in a normal year, but I wonder if it will get cold enough? Were they common on farmsteads in your area, or were spring houses more common - http://waltonfeed.com/old/springhs.html ?

If you are going to store cans of food, I'd absolutely seal them in FoodSaver bags to help prevent the moisture from deteriorating the cans.

Some other options:

In the book, "Preserving Food Without Freezing or Canning" they give instructions for Pit Silos for root crop, as well as Semi-Buried Silo and a Trench Silo. There is also a good bit of information about food preparation and storage in a root cellar. Several small pits might be better than one large cellar for security and obscurity.

Similar information: http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/ho-125.pdf

Be sure to let us know how things work for you.

-Karen

[pinetreefarm]

I wish I could come up with a better solution for my root crops, onion, etc. We don't even have a basement and land is flat so building a root cellar would not work. Our winters can get to -60 degrees.

At present I use a portion of our garage that is heated to 60 degrees. It is dark in there most of the time. Everything keeps but not much past February. Moisture may be an issue.

Pine

[TNDadx4]

We don't have one, but wish that we did. When we get our next piece of property (more room), I will have one dug.

It's a shame that we've (society collectively) gotten away from even knowing what these are.

[jen_in_southtexas]

Shamrock...

Thank you for the links. I am always open to new ideas. As far as what was used in the area(springhouses,rootcellars), I dont even know. The one acre property that I will very soon be closing on does not have a spring nearby nor do any properties in the area that i know off. Most bodies of water are seasonal creeks that remain dry almost year long unless we are blessed with lots of rain. People have small yard ponds as well. We are a dry area.

I may do an "experimental" underground storage or call it what you may. That will be a while yet before i get situated.

-j

-j

[wy0mn]

Grandparents used one (Alabama) but I wasn't interested in learning the particulars back then. And I'm not sure what veg/tubers they did use it for. We kids weren't allowed in there, it being old with rotted log roofing covered with sod.
Onions & garlic, we just braided the green tops together and hung them in bunches, like garlic in old "B" vampire flicks.
I have a copy of the Readers Digest book Back To Basics c.1981, it states that you must be able to maintain temps of 30-40F and humidity of 80-90%.
I suppose you could go ahead and dig the thing then test it for specs. If its unsuitable for use as a root cellar, you can still store other things there.
Lex