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<br>One of the biggest problems we face as gardeners is how to extend produce grown during the spring, summer, and fall, through the winter months.<br><br>Of course, canning is one method and we hope to have classes set up by next Fall. Another method is freezing, but if you're trying to get off of the grid this isn't an option you're looking at. Not only does a freezer use outside energy, but it can also break down, requiring repairs and parts.<br><br>Certainly, the most sustainable alternative is the root cellar of our ancestors which most likely dates back to the discovery of the cool recesses and depths of caves.<br><br>Lacking your own cave, following is a description of how you can go about building your own root cellar, either attached to your house or as a stand alone out-building.<br><br>I grew up with a root cellar in Moreland Hills east of Cleveland, with all of its dark corners, troves of apples and potatoes, jars of preserves,
pickles, canned fruits, and the biggest, scariest spiders I think I've ever seen!<br><br>It was a wondrous and wonderful world.<br><br>Enjoy, and make sure that your children enjoy so that they have rich memories to savor!<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><a href="http://www.organicgardening.com/"><img src="http://www.organicgardening.com/images/logo.gif" alt="home" border="0" height="68" width="319"></a>
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<td><span class="title">Building A Root Cellar</span></td>
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<br> A root cellar was an essential part of every home in the days
before fresh produce was available in supermarkets year-round. (The
root cellar was also the spookiest spot in most old houses.) A root
cellar is still an easy, inexpensive and a cool way to store root
crops, winter squash and some other homegrown produce. <br>
<br>Even if you live in a newer house, you can still have a root
cellar. The following are simple plans for transforming a corner of
your basement into a root cellar, with a minimum of know-how and
readily available materials. <br>
<br>Choose a damp spot. Most crops keep best in relatively high
humidity. So build your root cellar in the dampest area of your
basement (typically the sump pump is in the dampest corner). <br>
<br>Next to an exterior wall. You want, if possible, to build on a wall
that's below grade (underground), because you want the greatest contact
with outside soil temperature you can get. If you need to use a wall
that's above grade, be sure it doesn't get too much sun. (Use north or
shaded walls.) <br>
<br><b>Allow for ventilation.</b>
<br>Without ventilation, your stored produce will spoil. To create good
ventilation, you need to get two pipes through that outside wall—one at
the highest point of the room. Both pipes should be about 3 inches in
diameter. Try to pick a site that allows for this easily, such as one
that includes a casement window or the like. <br>
<br>Your vents can be made of just about any pipe or ducting. Plastic
(PVC)—3 inch—is durable and easy to work with, and the valves you'll
need fit right into it. Cut a length of the plastic pipe to reach
through the wall. Cut the end straight. Slide a closed blast gate
(valve) onto the pipe until it fits snugly against the end of the pipe
just tight enough to impart a slight resistance. Use 3 or 4 screws to
secure the valve to the pipe. <br>
<br>Now cut pieces of pipe for the other vent. This one can go through
the wall just about anywhere; just add an elbow and a length of pipe
running down the inside so that it ends up about a foot from the floor.
Add another blast gate in that pipe. <br>
<br>These two vents create a siphon. Cool air is more dense than warm
air, and will collect in low spots. Anytime the air outside your root
cellar is cooler than the air inside, the siphon will allow warm air to
be drawn out and cool air to flow in. As outside temperatures
fluctuate, you'll get almost continuous air change while keeping the
temperature as low as possible. <br>
<br>Which brings us to the reason for the valves. If the temperature
outside goes below freezing, you should close one of the valves to stop
the siphon. You'll get some venting while keeping things from freezing.
If the outside temperature goes way below freezing, you'll need to
close both valves (at least partially). <br>
<br>Seal the wall around the pipes with aerosol insulating foam. This
will fill in any gaps and cracks, and once it sets, does a good job of
holding your pipes in place, too. <br>
<br><b>Build the walls</b>
<br>You could build the walls out of just about anything, but, due to
the moist conditions, you should splurge on a handful of 2X4s made of
cedar or other rot-resistant wood for framing, and some
moisture-resistant wall board ("green board" sold for use in shower
stalls). <br>
<br>Nail a 2X4 to the ceiling, fasten another to the concrete floor
with a bead of construction adhesive (the kind in caulking gun tubes)
and cut the studs to fit between them. <br>
<br><b>Cover the walls</b>
<br>Put your gypsum board on the inside surfaces first. Once the inside
panels are glued and screwed in place, stuff the cavities with
fiberglass insulation and cover the outsides. With all of the coverings
in place, get out the aerosol foam again and shoot it into all of the
cracks—especially between your new wall and the (likely) ragged edges
of the old walls. <br>
<br>A root cellar does not need to be airtight, but the tighter it is
the more control you'll have over the air quality and temperature. Plug
as many gaps as you can. <br>
<br><b>Add the shelves</b>
<br>Bear in mind that lower shelves will be cooler and wetter, higher
shelves will be warmer and dryer. Arrange and space your shelves to
suit the items that will likely be stored on them.
<br>
<br><b>Hang a door</b>
<br>You can use a ready-made door if you want. Or you can make it
simply from quarter-inch plywood and hang it directly on the studs. One
customizing touch worth considering is to make the door in two pieces.
This way you can open the top half and grab a couple carrots without
letting out the coldest, dampest air at the bottom of the root cellar. <br>
<br><b>Finishing touch</b>
<br>Fasten a rod to the handle of each blast gate and run it through
the wall into the basement. This way you can open and close the valves
without opening the door and spilling the cold air. It also will allow
you to see whether the valves are open or closed without opening the
door. <p>
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<div> </div><span style="font-style: italic; font-family: bookman old style,new york,times,serif; color: rgb(192, 0, 0);">Lawrence A. Parker</span><img alt=""><br><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Managing Director</span><br style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The Akron Cooperative</span><br style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">234-525-0543</span><br><span><a target="_blank" href="http://www.akroncooperative.com/">http://www.akroncooperative.com/</a></span><br><br style="color: rgb(0, 127, 64);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 127, 64); font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail.</span><div><br></div>
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