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Store Food in a Living State - food.straw.livingstorage PEP BB

BB Food Prep and Preservation - straw badge
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This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum.  Completing this BB is part of getting the straw badge in Food Prep and Preservation

For this badge bit, you will store food in a living state (at least 20 pounds each of 6 different species)!

Related Articles:
- Stocking the Root Cellar
- Preparing Potatoes for Winter Storage
- 20 Crops that Keep and How to Store Them
- How to Store Potatoes in Your Garden


(source: Pinterest.com)

Minimum requirements for this BB:
- Storing food in a living state (possibly in a root cellar)
- At least 20 pounds of each food
- Six different species - Possibilities include:
  - Tree fruit
  - Root crops
  - Onions
  - Garlic
  - Cabbage
  - Tubers
  - Winter squash
  - Nuts
  - Seeds

To show you've completed this Badge Bit, you must provide proof of the following as pictures or video (<2 mins):
   - at least 20 pounds of 6 different species of food
   - preparing the storage space/medium for the food stuff
   - food in stored in a living state (obviously not spoiled in any way)
COMMENTS:
 
pollinator
Posts: 112
Location: North Texas USDA Zone 8a Climate Zone 3A
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Would grains and beans count for this BB? I live in Texas where it is to warm to keep things like potatoes and squash in a root cellar or basement. Every other BB in the Sand and Straw list seems achievable, but I get stuck while planning how to concur this one. If I could add beans and grains to the list, this BB would still be challenging but it would be achievable at my current location.  
 
steward
Posts: 15505
Location: Northern WI (zone 4)
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I think that falls well within the spirit of this BB...
 
gardener & hugelmaster
Posts: 3694
Location: Gulf of Mexico cajun zone 8
1970
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Robin, I'm originally from CenTex & the easy things that immediately come to mind are pecans, chili petins, onions, garlic, mesquite & pinto beans.
 
Robin Swindle
pollinator
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Location: North Texas USDA Zone 8a Climate Zone 3A
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Mike Barkley wrote:Robin, I'm originally from CenTex & the easy things that immediately come to mind are pecans, chili petins, onions, garlic, mesquite & pinto beans.


Thanks Mike! That is great advice. I hadn’t thought about chilis, pinto or mesquite beans.
 
Mike Haasl
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Approved submission
I think I finished this one!

Apples: well over 20 lbs
  - Packed in dry planer shavings, in round buckets, in the root cellar
Potatoes: over 28 lbs
  - Loose in a bin in the root cellar
Sweet potatoes: 26 lbs
  - Loose in a bin in the basement
Onions: 29 lbs
  - Loose in a bin in the root cellar
Squash: tons
  - Loose in bins in the basement
Carrots: well over 20 lbs
  - Packed in damp planer shavings, in square buckets, in the root cellar ("eat now" ones are loose in round buckets on the floor in one picture)
Apple-haul-.jpg
Apple haul!
Apple haul!
Carrots-.jpg
Carrots!
Carrots!
Packing-up-the-carrots.jpg
Packing up the carrots
Packing up the carrots
Onions-(top)-potatoes-(left)-carrots-on-the-bottom-and-beets-(bonus)-above-the-carrots.jpg
Onions (top) potatoes (left), carrots on the bottom and beets (bonus) above the carrots
Onions (top) potatoes (left), carrots on the bottom and beets (bonus) above the carrots
Onions-(scale-hits-22-at-the-top-and-keeps-going).jpg
Onions (scale hits 22# at the top and keeps going)
Onions (scale hits 22# at the top and keeps going)
Packing-apples.jpg
[Thumbnail for Packing-apples.jpg]
Taters.jpg
Taters
Taters
taters-on-the-scale-(went-past-22-and-on-to-7.5-29.5).jpg
taters on the scale (went past 22# and on to 7.5 &amp;#61; 29.5)
taters on the scale (went past 22# and on to 7.5 &amp;#61; 29.5)
Apples-on-the-right-eat-now-carrots-on-the-floor.jpg
Apples on the right, eat now carrots on the floor
Apples on the right, eat now carrots on the floor
Sw-potatoes-at-the-far-upper-left-butternuts-and-spaghettti-squash-in-the-bins.jpg
Sw potatoes at the far upper left, butternuts and spaghettti squash in the bins
Sw potatoes at the far upper left, butternuts and spaghettti squash in the bins
26-of-sweet-potatoes.jpg
26# of sweet potatoes
26# of sweet potatoes
Staff note (gir bot) :

Mike Barkley approved this submission.

 
gardener
Posts: 1490
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Approved submission
here is our food we stored up for winter.   it is from our garden and our friends garden.  
.
Each of these containers is 25 or more pounds of food.     The box of pumpkins does have two storage watermelons in it.  It weighed 25# before I put those in..

I store the parsnips,



rutabagas,



potatoes



in a room with a concrete floor and no heat.  It is attached to the building and does not freeze.

I store the squash


and pumpkins



in the house under the bed.

the kale I buried in a snow bank.  it has kept well there   still looks great in this picture.  we have eaten it all now and it  was sweet stored in the snow like that.



Staff note (gir bot) :

Paul Fookes approved this submission.
Note: I certify this BB complete. Great pictures Samantha

 
gardener
Posts: 416
Location: 6a; BSk; Suburbia; 0.35 acres
177
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Approved submission
I've never stored so much food for the winter and I was so excited to get this setup in my crawlspace! Here are my numbers:

Potatoes: 31.6lbs
Sweet Potatoes: 23.4lbs
Winter Squash: 26lbs
Beets: 22.6 lbs
Leeks: 26.4lbs
Apples: a bit under 35lbs since I removed the smallest apples for making cider since I found out that they wouldn't store as well
Onions: 21.3lbs
Pumpkins: 21.8lbs

Cheers!
Potatoes.png
[Thumbnail for Potatoes.png]
SweetPotatoes.png
[Thumbnail for SweetPotatoes.png]
WinterSquash.png
[Thumbnail for WinterSquash.png]
Beets.png
[Thumbnail for Beets.png]
Leeks.png
[Thumbnail for Leeks.png]
apples.png
[Thumbnail for apples.png]
onions.png
[Thumbnail for onions.png]
pumpkins.png
[Thumbnail for pumpkins.png]
Staff note (gir bot) :

Someone approved this submission.

 
Apprentice Rocket Scientist
Posts: 853
Location: 4a, high mountain dessert
410
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Approved submission
I store food in two places on my homestead. One is in a sprinkler box-root cellar build ( what? the sprinkler guy has extra sprinkler boxes lying around!? yep. Which is nice, because these big ones are a couple hundred dollars.) I stored potatoes, parsnips, and sunchokes in this tiny cellar.
The second place is an unheated room in my basement, which stays below 60 degrees F all winter.  I stored apples, pears, and onions in the food room. or "larder" as Paul calls it.
20240921_160444.jpg
to prep the tiny root cellar, I clean out any debris, and lay in clean organic straw. Here I am layering potatoes and straw into the lower box
to prep the tiny root cellar, I clean out any debris, and lay in clean organic straw. Here I am layering potatoes and straw into the lower box
20241120_133504.jpg
in my food storage room, all I had to do was move things around to fit in my 3 big, non-plastic containers for the apples, pears, and onions. I also placed a thermometer to show temp
in my food storage room, all I had to do was move things around to fit in my 3 big, non-plastic containers for the apples, pears, and onions. I also placed a thermometer to show temp
20241007_094803.jpg
32 pounds of apples
32 pounds of apples
20241120_155956.jpg
23.8 lbs.
23.8 lbs. Of pears
20241120_155029.jpg
22.1 lbs of onions.
22.1 lbs of onions.
20241014_115944.jpg
sunchokes on a scale
sunchokes on a scale
20241014_165538.jpg
sunchokes going into the root cellar
sunchokes going into the root cellar
20241126_091451-1-.jpg
150 pounds of potatoes. These spuds were gleaned from an organic field. The grower provided the boxes
150 pounds of potatoes. These spuds were gleaned from an organic field. The grower provided the boxes
20240921_161018.jpg
more potatoes going into the root cellar. As I layer them in, I'm careful that no food touches plastic of the sprinkler boxes. Only straw.
more potatoes going into the root cellar. As I layer them in, I
parsnips2.jpg
parsnips on scale
parsnips on scale
20241120_160115.jpg
apples, pears, and onion in the cold room
apples, pears, and onion in the cold room
20241126_094520.jpg
Parsnips in the root cellar
Parsnips in the root cellar
20241126_094510.jpg
2 months later, the quality of food in the root cellar is amazing! Not even a little shriveling, which I had expected since it's been so dry this fall. But nope! Still wonderful!
2 months later, the quality of food in the root cellar is amazing! Not even a little shriveling, which I had expected since it's been so dry this fall. But nope! Still wonderful!
20241126_094650.jpg
I then cover the root cellar with straw flakes, since it has begun snowing
I then cover the root cellar with straw flakes, since it has begun snowing
20241124_133604.jpg
2 months after the apples are stored, they are still lovely. Just a little wrinkling
2 months after the apples are stored, they are still lovely. Just a little wrinkling
20241120_154559.jpg
The pears took a vinegar bath in order to store them. This way, they should last more than a month
The pears took a vinegar bath in order to store them. This way, they should last more than a month
20241124_133630.jpg
Still looking great!
Still looking great!
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Someone approved this submission.

 
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the permaculture bootcamp in winter (plus half-assed holidays)
https://permies.com/t/149839/permaculture-projects/permaculture-bootcamp-winter-assed-holidays
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