I have a question about an interesting feature of an old house we recently bought in southwestern Virginia. The gentleman that sold it to us (who hadn't ever lived in it) said that the approximately 2 foot wide, 8 foot deep metal cylinder extending down into the dirt part of the basement was used as a root cellar! Cool, I said, as this summer has been my inaugural foray into vegetable gardening. We've grown an abundance of root vegetables and were wondering how to use this space. I put a digital thermometer at the bottom, and it registered 71 degrees, which was the same temperature as the whole basement at the time. I was wondering if I could use this cylinder/root cellar to store the produce that is ready to be put by now (like cabbages), as the temperature is far from cold??? Any ideas as to how to reach what might could possibly be stored at the bottom (one I get the petrified mice out)?
