How to store carrots for the winter? Among the methods that are intended for storing carrots, each gardener will find his own, the one that is most preferable to him. But first you should prepare for this and decide, adhering to the right technology. First, we decide on the timing of cleaning.
Despite the fact that this root vegetable can withstand light frosts, you should not overexpose it in the garden. However, harvesting vegetables too early reduces consumer qualities root vegetables, preventing them from collecting enough sugars.
And vice versa - staying in the garden for too long allows for the accumulation of sugars in large quantities, which makes the root crop very attractive to rodents during further storage.
Therefore, harvesting should be scheduled at the time when the lower 2-3 shoots of the tops begin to acquire a yellow color - such root crops already have good consumer qualities, but will be the least attractive to pests.
Before harvesting, do not water the bed with root vegetables for several days, and when digging, use a fork that has blunt teeth - this way you will avoid damaging the vegetables.
It begins from this stage. You should not clear carrots from clods of earth by hitting the root vegetables against each other, this will damage the vegetables and reduce their shelf life.
Equally important is cooling the root crops immediately after digging. This usually happens within 1-2 days, until the temperature of the vegetable products drops by +1.5 degrees. Timely cooling increases the efficiency of preserving root crops.
You can cool it in the air if the temperature outside is low enough. But at the same time, it is necessary to monitor the presence of frosts so that the temperature of root vegetables does not drop below 0 degrees - frozen vegetables will rot. Good result gives cooling in refrigeration chamber, if possible.
Usually it is enough to withstand outside temperature during the time when the vegetables are dried, they are cleared of clods of earth and the tops are trimmed.
Processing carrots before storage involves first cutting off the tops as close as possible to the head of the root crop. This type of pruning allows you to remove buds, which can subsequently grow. You should immediately lay out the root vegetables to dry, and then remove the soil with your hands, being careful not to damage them.
After this, the root crops are sorted, separating good, healthy specimens from damaged ones and those with various defects. Some vegetable growers also use this method of cutting tops, such as cutting off 0.5 -1 cm of the top of the root crop itself.
If this method is used, then the vegetables should be kept for some time before being placed in the main storage location - until the top cut is covered with a crust. Otherwise, the root crops will begin to rot soon.
Rejected copies can be processed and stored in a form already prepared for further use. How to preserve carrots for the winter? To do this, use the following methods:
- Canning carrots.
Each of these methods will allow you to store ready-to-eat root vegetables. long time, allowing you to preserve all the nutritional qualities of vegetables, although it requires a lot of labor and availability extra space in the apartment.
Good quality specimens that do not have visible defects are stored in a variety of ways.
Depending on how much space the vegetable grower has for organizing storage, the location is selected. How to store carrots for the winter?
Basic Rules
How to properly store carrots for the winter? There are no specific recommendations on how best to store carrots for the winter and where. The determining factors for long-term preservation of the crop are compliance with:
- choosing a variety of root crops;
- compliance with preparation technology;
- temperature regime;
- humidity conditions;
- lack of excess oxygen supply;
- pest protection.
For long-term storage throughout the winter, late-ripening varieties show the best performance. These could be Moscow Winter and Chantane. But early ripening varieties demonstrate poor keeping quality.
At what temperature should carrots be stored in winter? Temperature is very important. At temperatures approaching zero, metabolism will slow down up to 10 times, which guarantees long-term preservation of root crops. Best Temperature should not exceed +10 degrees Celsius. However, it is better to maintain it at a level of +1 - +2 degrees - at a temperature of more than +5 degrees, buds that have not been removed may begin to grow.
Equally important is maintaining the humidity regime in storage areas. It should be at the level of 90-95%. Lower humidity will lead to premature withering of root crops, and higher humidity will cause them to rot. What is the best way to store carrots for the winter?
Shelf life
How long to store carrots? The shelf life of carrots is classified in various ways as follows::
- in plastic bags, subject to storage in a refrigerator - from 1 to 2 months;
- in the cellar in closed boxes - up to 5-8 months;
- in the cellar in pine sawdust or in a clay shell - until the next harvest;
- in a cellar in sand – 6-8 months;
- in the garden - until the new harvest.
This is in conditions where the pests will have limited opportunity to feast on root crops. To prevent them from having this opportunity, the following measures should be taken:
- set traps with bait;
- place repellers;
- treat vegetable storage and storage areas accordingly.
As another tip, avoid storing carrots in the same room, this will preserve the root vegetables longer.
Also remains controversial issue Is it possible to store carrots together with potatoes?.
Reasons for damage
Why do carrots rot during storage? There may be several reasons why carrots rot during storage.:
- bookmark for storage of damaged copies;
- sharp fluctuations in temperature;
- excess humidity;
- non-compliance with storage technology.
That is why you should extremely carefully adhere to the technology of preparing root vegetables for storage, starting from the moment you dig up the vegetables. Since this type of root crops is very easily damaged by any blows, you should not knock the vegetables off the ground or throw them from place to place.
Such damage will be barely noticeable, but subsequently it will become the point where the root crop itself begins to rot and the other root crops nearby become infected with fungal diseases.
A sharp change in temperature during storage leads to the formation of condensation - this gives impetus to the rotting of root crops. Storage areas such as bags made of polyethylene are especially susceptible to this. To eliminate condensation, it is necessary to provide holes at the bottom of the bags.
Even slight freezing of root crops, which can occur already at a temperature of -1 degree, will lead to subsequent rotting of the root crops.
Excessive, as well as insufficient, humidity reduces the shelf life of root crops. Therefore, it is important to maintain it at the proper level - if it is insufficient, by additional humidification, if it is excessive, by transferring it to another room, but avoiding temperature fluctuations.
Often, non-compliance with storage technology leads to excessive formation of carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide has a negative impact on the storage conditions of root crops, so it is necessary to follow the storage technology chosen by the vegetable grower as closely as possible.
carrot fly
How to preserve carrots damaged by carrot flies? The carrot fly is one of those pests that damages root crops even at the stage of their cultivation. It is a real disaster for all gardeners. Unfortunately, storing root vegetables that are damaged by carrot flies is only possible in processed form.
Sometimes they use a method of removing damaged areas and then keeping vegetables in the air until the area becomes covered with a crust. However, the shelf life of such vegetables will be significantly reduced.
Therefore, it is better to immediately process such root vegetables - drying, drying, freezing or canning. Moreover, modern technology, which is used at home, allows you to do this in the best possible way.
Storing in vegetable storage
How to store beets and carrots for the winter large quantities. Vegetable storage facilities are used to organize the storage of large quantities of root crops. And since large batches are delivered to vegetable storage facilities, as a rule, after mechanized harvesting, the most careful sorting of root crops should be carried out.
Storing beets and carrots for the winter with the greatest efficiency will help to ruthlessly remove damaged, broken, uneven or depleted specimens from the total mass. Modern vegetable storage facilities allow you to maintain the required temperature and humidity conditions.
How to store carrots in winter in storage? Typically, carrots in vegetable stores are stored in bunches or in special containers. It is advisable that the height of such edges does not exceed 2-3 meters.
If storage is organized in special containers or pallets, then the stack height should not exceed 5.5 m. In this case it is necessary:
- carry out constant ventilation of the room;
- cover root crops with burlap;
- implement measures to maintain high air humidity.
To increase air humidity in the room, place containers with water, and spraying is also used upper layers root crops located on outdoors, spilling passages with water. However, the best results are shown by vegetable storage facilities that are equipped with refrigeration equipment.
Unfortunately, such equipment has a high cost, so the organization of storage of carrots is still limited to modern technologies carried out in very few farms. The rest will have to come to terms with the loss of the harvest, up to 30% of which does not reach the consumer due to spoilage.
Now you know how to preserve carrots until spring. Root vegetables such as carrots are considered the most difficult vegetable crop for storage. Therefore, it is extremely important to follow the technology of all stages of storage organization, and then for a long time this delicious root vegetable, grown with your own hands, will be on your table.
Carrots are not the most popular ingredient in all kinds of winter preparations. These vegetables are good fresh, especially after a long winter. They contain a supply of vitamins A, C, bioflavonoids and essential amino acids inside. Therefore, most summer residents are wondering how to store carrots so that they remain fresh until the summer.
Meanwhile, preserving carrots for the winter is not an easy task: the thin peel is easily damaged, exposing the roots to rot or disease. Start throwing out spoiled crops already under New Year– for many people it’s a common thing. Harvesting and storing carrots requires compliance with several rules that will help you avoid trouble.
Due to shortcomings in preparatory stage vegetables can wither, rot or sprout right in the box. To prevent this from happening, it is important to find out all the nuances before harvesting carrots: when to dig them up for storage, how to trim them correctly, how to choose appropriate place to save carrots until spring.
Preparing carrots for storage begins with the right choice time. As a rule, it occurs at the end of September - beginning of October; early and mid-season varieties are dug up before the onset of autumn.
The ripening time is usually indicated on the packets of seeds, but if the packaging has already been lost, the lower carrot leaves can become a kind of indicator. If they turn yellow, then it's time to dig. It is important not to rush, so that the vegetables have time to ripen, and not to be late, so that the first frost does not spoil them. On the eve of harvesting, it is advised not to water the garden bed.
So, when harvesting carrots, it is advisable to adhere to the following sequence of actions:
- Carefully, trying not to damage the root crops, dig them up with a shovel or remove them by hand.
- Clean carrots from dirt. It is not necessary to wash carrots, but if available heavy pollution Can. This should be done without using abrasive sponges. It is important to dry the washed carrots well.
- Remove the tops so that they do not draw out all the moisture from the root crop. Regarding the best way to trim carrots for storage, experts agree that this should be done in two stages. First, the leaves are cut just above the base, then removed completely, capturing 5-10 mm of the fruit itself.
- Dry the vegetables in the fresh air, spreading them in one layer under a canopy.
- Sort the harvest, remove spoiled specimens.
- Choose a place to store the crop.
How to properly store carrots: basic principles
The question of at what temperature and humidity carrots should be stored is perhaps the most important. In warm weather it will begin to germinate, in too much cold it will lose its properties, and in low humidity it will wither.
Optimal temperature Carrot storage ranges from 0°C to 2°C. Air humidity should be about 90%, but not higher than 97%.
When choosing where to store carrots, you should first take these indicators into account. In addition, before planting root crops, it is important to disinfect, dry and ventilate the room. But after placing the crop for wintering, the flow of air into the room should be limited: ventilation should be moderate. Following basic recommendations on how best to store carrots will significantly increase their shelf life. Carrots can stay fresh for up to 12 (!) months.
Storage spaces: from a hole in the ground to a city apartment
Basic ways to store carrots:
- In the cellar or basement. This is the most popular storage option - it is protected from precipitation and temperature changes. In the dungeon, you can lay carrots in stacks (piles), simply sprinkle them with sand, place them in enamel pans or boxes (preferably plastic). With any of the options, it is advisable to place the carrots or containers with them without contact with the walls or floor, for example, on a small stand. This will help prevent mold and rot.
- In a trench dug in the ground. Carrots, as in the underground, are covered in rows, with sand filling the gaps. You will have to build a “roof” over the storage, for example, from boards and roofing felt, to protect the pit from excess moisture.
- In a barrel. You can find a lot of tips on the Internet on how to store carrots in containers dug into the ground. You will have to spend time preparing the place - dig a hole where groundwater are far from the surface, paste over metal barrel roofing material, make holes and build drainage ditches around it to remove moisture, protect it from precipitation with a canopy. If you believe the reviews, the result will please you even in late spring.
- At the vegetable warehouse. In the premises for storing crops at vegetable growing enterprises, optimal conditions, because spoiled vegetables here are associated with serious losses. If it is possible to agree on the placement of carrots in a warehouse, this would be a good option. However, this is only relevant for large batches of harvest.
- In a house or apartment. This is not the most convenient or reliable way to store carrots for the winter. However, if there is no pit, basement or warehouse, you can use a balcony or a cool storage room for this purpose. In this case, it is especially important to monitor temperature and humidity conditions. It is worth storing on the balcony if it is insulated or if frost-proof containers are used. It would be wise to protect food from light, dirt and dust; you can cover the carrots with burlap.
Sand of time
Storing carrots in sand is most popular among gardeners, regardless of where the crop is located - in the cellar, on the balcony or in a trench. Before storing carrots in sand, you need to make sure it is sufficiently moist. If the lump squeezed in your hands does not crumble, there is enough moisture in the sand. If it is dry, use a liter of water per standard 12-liter bucket.
Sand prevents carrots from drying out and the appearance of putrefactive diseases, and maintains a constant temperature. It is not recommended to store carrots in sand brought from the river bank; for this it is better to use loamy sand. Usually it is poured into a box to a height of 3-5 cm and the vegetables are placed separately from each other, sprinkling sand on each layer. In reviews of how to store carrots in such a filler, most gardeners share positive impressions.
Storing carrots in sawdust
Some summer residents doubt whether it is possible to store carrots in sawdust, whether they will begin to rot, ruining the entire harvest. In order not to worry about this, you need to store carrots in sawdust coniferous trees– they contain phytoncides that have bactericidal, antifungal properties and prevent the germination of root crops.
The instructions on how to store carrots in sawdust completely repeat the recommendations related to sand. In this case, you also need to place vegetables in boxes in layers, pouring filler in between.
Storing carrots in bags
The method of storing carrots in bags raises doubts among many. Any housewife has encountered the fact that fruits or vegetables left for a couple of days wrapped in plastic become covered with mold. Meanwhile, this method can be quite successful, and it can be used wherever the microclimate necessary for vegetables is maintained.
It is important to leave carrots stored for the winter in bags without closing them. This storage method will help maintain optimal humidity in plastic bags, but will not allow the accumulation of a large number carbon dioxide. It is because of its excess that vacuum-packed vegetables can spoil. You can also replace polyethylene with cellophane; the bags should also be left open.
How to store carrots in the refrigerator
The ability to build a carrot mini-warehouse in the refrigerator or freezer is suitable for those who need to save a small batch. In the refrigerator itself, the lower compartment is used for this. But you should eat such carrots first: they won’t last until spring.
It is much safer to use the freezer for this. Moreover, unlike other methods, you can store carrots in the freezer in any form - chopped in a food processor, chopped with a vegetable cutter, or simply grated. Fortified semi-finished products can last in the freezer until next summer and will be protected from diseases and pests.
Storing carrots in clay
Clay forms on carrots protective layer, which allows it to stay fresh longer. To store in this way, half a bucket of clay is filled with water. The resulting mixture can be filled into containers with carrots and left there for the winter. But then the root crops will have to be extracted with effort from the frozen rock.
Most often, another storage option is used using clay. Each carrot is simply dipped into the resulting mixture and left to dry. This procedure will be especially useful for those who have to store their crops at home.
Storing carrots in moss
Sphagnum moss is used for these purposes. It supports in containers with carrots required level humidity and carbon dioxide. Unlike clay and sand, it is also lightweight, so lowering containers with such filler to the bottom of the cellar will not be a problem.
Moss for storage must be sufficiently moist. It can be collected independently in swampy areas or in forests with ponds, or can be purchased at garden stores. Sphagnum is often used to fertilize plants.
What can cause carrots to go bad?
Carrots, more often than other vegetables, have to be taken out of storage not to be eaten, but to be thrown away. Why do carrots rot, become soft, or even become covered with a slimy coating? There could be a number of reasons for this:
- A carrot variety unsuitable for long-term storage. Early varieties, as a rule, is not enough for a long time. Among those that are best stored, experts name types of carrots with fruits of a regular, cone-shaped shape.
- Violation of preparation technology: injury to root crops during digging and cleaning, poor quality sorting, drying for too long or, conversely, lack of drying.
- Poor preparation of the premises, incorrect microclimate: any deviation of humidity or temperature values beyond normal limits is detrimental to the quality of carrots.
- Diseases of carrots during storage ( different kinds rot, scab). As a rule, the disease in these cases is caused by fungi. Their spores can be in the soil, get inside the fruit when it is damaged, be transmitted by pests, for example, carrot flies, or wait for the harvest in a poorly treated cellar. This often appears after several weeks of storage. To avoid such surprises, it is advisable to disinfect not only the walls and shelves of the storage, but also the vegetables themselves. Usually vegetables are disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate, infusion of pine needles or onion peel, powder with chalk. You can plant horseradish rhizomes, which have bactericidal and antifungal properties, in boxes with carrots.
- Rodents in the basement or cellar. There are usually no problems with diagnosing this problem; to prevent damage to the crop, it is worth getting rid of unwanted inhabitants in advance or placing Saracen mint next to the containers. It will repel mice and rats.
It turns out that the danger of partially or completely losing the carrot crop lies in wait for summer residents literally from everywhere. Some preventive measures are effective against one type of pest but not useful in others. But there is still a powerful weapon - compliance with the technology for preparing and storing carrots at all stages, starting with choosing the date in the calendar suitable for harvesting.
Carrots have a dense, firm texture and thin skin.. The harder it is, the better and longer it will be stored. Therefore, before choosing a storage method, sort good, firm carrots from root vegetables with internal and external damage.
If the carrots feel limp to the touch, have cracks, traces of pests, or have severely peeled skin, they need to be stored in other ways: salted, dried in a dryer, or frozen.
Which variety should I choose?
Only late ones are used for storage., which after the first frost: approximately from mid-September to mid-October:
- "Valeria".
- "Moscow Winter".
- "Incomparable."
- "Chantenay."
- "Losinoostrovskaya".
How to store carrots in jars?
It can be eaten raw not only in boxes, but also in jars, for example 5 or 3 liters. To do this, you first need to prepare the jars: wash and dry well. It is advisable not to just wash with detergent, and boil as before canning.
Carrots are placed vertically in prepared jars so that there is still a small distance between the fruits. You can put a small horseradish root in a jar or sprinkle it with pine sawdust. The jars need to be placed in the cellar, do not close the lids. There are several ways.
In the refrigerator with salt
For this method you will need the usual salt and a grater. Carrots need to be grated on a coarse grater and placed in clean jars (of any size), sprinkled with salt in layers. This product can be stored for up to 6 months. But the dishes in which it will later be used cannot be salted, otherwise the food will turn out over-salted.
Raw in the freezer
If you have a large one for preparations, it is perfect for storing carrots. To do this, the root vegetables must first be carefully dried and peeled, cut into bars and placed in a dry jar. Filled containers are sent to the freezer, where they can be stored for several months.
Dried
You can store not only pickled carrots in jars, but also. To do this, root vegetables are grated on a coarse grater and dried (in a special dryer, oven or in the sun).
Then the workpieces are placed in glass jars, closed with lids.
Watch a video about storing dried carrots:
With garlic and thyme
This is no longer just a storage method, but a recipe. The carrots are peeled, cut into cubes, distributed into jars and poured with hot marinade (spices mixed in boiling water, vegetable oil, salt, sugar).
Autumn is the time to harvest, prepare for future use and store vegetables for storage. They are sent to cellars or placed in cold basements. Special honor in winter months uses carrots. It is tasty, healthy and is added to almost every first and second dish. But not every city dweller can equip a cool storage facility. How to store carrots for the winter in an apartment if there is neither a garage nor a basement? Dry warm rooms- Not the best place for the gifts of autumn, but there are some ways to extend the life of vegetables.
Choosing a storage location
How to store carrots for the winter in an apartment with minimal losses? First you need to choose the coolest room. The optimal air temperature is 0-5 o C. When it drops, the root crops begin to freeze, and when it rises they begin to grow. More or less suitable places:
- Balcony or Here you can place and make sure that the temperature does not drop below zero. When frost sets in, carrots must be moved indoors and placed next to
- Fridge. Methods for storing carrots in an apartment for the winter depend on their quantity. If there are only a few root vegetables, they can be packaged and stored in a vegetable storage box.
- Home heating cabinet. This household appliance, powered by electricity, can be installed in any unheated room: on the veranda, in the garage or on the balcony.
Ways to preserve fresh carrots
One of the mistakes when storing root vegetables is thorough washing. Violation of the integrity of the surface layer leads to rapid rotting or drying out. Vegetables must be in an environment that prevents both.
- Box of sand. It must be clean and damp. To impart antiseptic properties, ash is added, chalk or carrots are laid horizontally, each layer is sprinkled with sand.
- Clay mash - good way how to preserve carrots if there are only a few of them. Root vegetables are dipped one by one in clay diluted to the consistency of sour cream. They are then dried in the sun and placed in unsealed plastic bags. After this treatment, carrots are stored for a long time; the clay crust reliably protects them from dampness and bacteria.
- Horseradish rhizomes. This effective method how to store carrots for the winter in an apartment if the harvest is large. Vegetables are stacked in large cardboard boxes: for twenty root vegetables there should be one long (about 30 cm) horseradish root. Such storage should be located in the coldest place, covered with a lid.
- Plastic bag. If there are few root vegetables, carrots in bags are placed in the refrigerator. It is recommended to wash it immediately before use.
An alternative solution is storing in the freezer
Storing carrots has always caused a lot of trouble for summer residents - after all, keeping this root vegetable fresh is not easy without proper conditions. The inventive minds of gardeners have come up with many ways to store carrots: in cellars, on balconies, in apartments and even directly in beds.
How to properly store carrots so that they remain juicy and fresh until the next harvest? Based on the existing conditions, the labor intensity of the process and the availability of materials, choose the most suitable one for you from the carrot storage options offered below.
Preparing carrots for long-term storage
The first rule for good preservation of the carrot harvest is proper and timely harvesting.
The ripening time of carrots depends on the variety. As a rule, they are indicated on the seed packet. It is better not to throw away the bag or to calculate the expected harvest day in advance (in the spring). Why? Carrots pulled out ahead of schedule, does not ripen, does not have time to accumulate a sufficient amount of sugars, which negatively affects its taste qualities. Carrots that are over-exposed in the garden, on the contrary, have an excess of sugars and amino acids, and this, in turn, makes them a tasty morsel for pests - carrot fly larvae, mice and rats.
If you still don’t know exactly when to harvest carrots, focus on the color of the tops. As soon as they start to turn yellow lower leaves– carrots are ready for harvesting.
To ensure that root crops remain juicy for a long time, they should not be watered the day before digging.
Immediately after harvesting, the tops of the carrots are cut off. Otherwise, it will draw some of the moisture from the root crops during drying.
Trimming carrot tops is best done in two stages:
- First, the leaves are cut just above the head of the root crop,
- then the “head” is cut off completely (0.5-1 cm thick) together at the growth point, and the cut should be even and smooth.
Such drastic pruning does not allow carrots to germinate in winter, wasting precious nutrients, prevents fruit from withering, provides them best storage. After cutting the tops, the carrots are ventilated under a canopy or dried in the sun for 2-3 hours.
It is recommended to keep carrot roots at a temperature of 10-14°C for 7-10 days. During this time, she, just like , undergoes a kind of “quarantine”: the places of cuts and small mechanical damage, sick and spoiled root crops make themselves felt.
Before harvesting carrots into storage, they are inspected and sorted again, removing all unsuitable root crops.
Method number 1. How to properly store carrots in sand
You will need: sand (preferably loamy, not river sand), water and boxes.
Storing carrots in sand is very popular among summer residents who have cool cellars, crawl spaces, and garage pits. And it is not surprising, because sand reduces the evaporation of moisture from carrots, prevents the development of putrefactive diseases, and ensures a constant temperature. All this contributes to the excellent keeping quality of root crops.
The sand must be wet; one liter of water is used for moistening each bucket of sand. Then the prepared sand is poured onto the bottom of the box in a layer of 3-5 centimeters. Then they lay the carrots so that the root vegetables do not come into contact with each other. The carrots are covered with a layer of sand, and then the next layer is laid out, etc.
Some gardeners prefer to use dry sand instead of wet sand and buckets instead of boxes.
Method No. 2. Storing carrots in sawdust
You will need: pine sawdust and boxes.
Tree sawdust coniferous species- another great filler for boxes of carrots intended for long-term storage. The phytoncides contained in the needles prevent the germination of root crops and prevent the penetration of pathogenic fungi and bacteria.
In the same way as when sanding, carrots need to be placed in boxes in layers, sprinkling each layer with sawdust.
Method No. 3. How to store carrots in plastic bags
You will need: film bags with a capacity of 5 to 30 kg.
Plastic bags with carrots are kept open in cool rooms. The air humidity in such bags is maintained by itself. optimal level in 96-98%, and therefore the carrots do not wither.
In addition, carrot roots emit carbon dioxide during storage. In open bags, a small amount accumulates, just enough to prevent disease. If the bags are tied, the carbon dioxide content will be several times higher than the oxygen concentration and the carrots will spoil. If you still want to store root vegetables in closed bags, be sure to make holes for ventilation.
During storage, condensation may form on the inner surface of the bags - this indicates high humidity in storage. Then fluff lime is scattered next to the bags of carrots, which absorbs excess moisture.
Method number 4. Storing carrots in clay
You will need: clay, water, boxes or carton boxes, polyethylene film, garlic (optional).
Clay forms a thin protective layer on the surface of the root crop, which protects it from withering during the winter.
There are two options for treating carrots with clay before storing them.
Option 1. Filling with clay
Take half a bucket of clay and fill it with water. A day later, the clay, swollen with water, is thoroughly mixed and filled with water again. For 3-4 days, the clay is in this state, under a layer of water of 2-3 cm. Before use, the clay must acquire the consistency of sour cream.
Then the bottom of the boxes is lined with film, a layer of carrots is placed (so that the fruits do not touch each other) and filled with liquid clay. When the layer of clay dries, the carrots are laid out again and also filled with clay, and then dried again. And so on until the very top of the box.
Option 2. Dipping in clay
With this method, unwashed carrots are dipped first in garlic and then in a clay mash and laid out to dry in a well-ventilated area (on the veranda, in the attic, under a canopy). Then the dried carrots in the “clay shell” are placed in wooden boxes or cardboard boxes.
Garlic mash is prepared as follows: grind 1 glass of garlic through a meat grinder, then dilute the “minced meat” in 2 liters of water.
To get a clay “mash” you need to dilute the clay with water to the consistency of thick sour cream, so that it cannot then drain from the root vegetables.
Method No. 5 Storing carrots in moss
You will need: wooden or plastic boxes, sphagnum moss.
Unwashed and sun-dried carrots are first kept in a cool room for 24 hours, and then placed in boxes, alternating layers of carrots with layers of sphagnum moss.
Moss has unique preservative properties, retaining required amount carbon dioxide. In addition, unlike sand and clay, moss is a lightweight material that does not add additional heaviness to boxes of carrots.
Method number 6. Storing carrots in pans
You will need: large enamel pans.
After harvesting, the carrots must be washed well, the tops and “tail” cut off, and the roots dried in the sun.
Then the root vegetables are placed tightly vertically in the pan, a napkin is placed on top of them and the pan is covered with a lid. It is recommended to keep all pots with carrots in a cool cellar - then the carrots will last well until the new harvest.
Method No. 7. How to store carrots in onion skins
You will need: boxes, onion and garlic peels.
This method of storing carrots is based on the same principle as storing them in pine sawdust - essential oils from onion and garlic scales also prevent rotting of root crops.
Therefore, carrots do not spoil for a long time if they are laid in layers, first sprinkled with dry husks onions and garlic remaining after harvesting these crops and accumulated over the winter.
Method No. 8. Storing carrots in the garden
Some gardeners leave part of the carrot harvest to overwinter directly in the garden bed, then dig it up in the spring and eat it all summer until the new harvest.
The tops of carrots left for storage in the garden bed are completely cut off. Then the bed is covered with damp coarse sand and covered with film.
Sawdust, fallen leaves, peat or humus are poured on top of the film, and then the bed is covered with roofing felt or another layer of film. Under such shelter, carrots tolerate winter cold well and remain fresh and tasty.
A few more original ways to store carrots
Cling film for storing carrots
Pre-washed and trimmed carrots are wrapped in cling film, trying to ensure that each carrot is completely wrapped in film and does not come into contact with its “neighbors”.
Spraying root crops before storage
Root vegetables are stored well if they are first sprayed with an infusion of pine needles or onion peels. For 100 g of husk or pine needles, take a liter of water and infuse for 5 days. This infusion can not only be sprayed, you can immerse carrots in it for 10 minutes, dry it and store it.
Storing carrots in paraffin
Unusual folk way storing carrots in paraffin. Clean and dried root vegetables are dipped in hot paraffin with the addition of a small amount of beeswax for elasticity. This treatment allows carrots to be stored for 4-5 months at a temperature of 0-2°C. It will remain tasty and fresh.
Chalk will prevent carrots from spoiling
Carrots can be dusted with chalk at the rate of 150-200 grams of chalk per 10 kg. carrots. Another option is to immerse the root vegetables in a 30% chalk slurry and then dry thoroughly. The chalk layer creates a weak alkaline environment, thereby preventing root crops from rotting.
Freezing as an option for storing carrots
If your carrot harvest is small and you have freezer, has the meaning most grate carrots using food processor and freeze in regular plastic bags.
In addition, you can store carrots by wrapping each root vegetable separately in paper or newspaper.
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