Carol Meyer

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since Jul 29, 2023
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Recent posts by Carol Meyer

Douglas thanks so much for that info.  I guess I was thinking as long as temperature/humidity was good I could keep stuff longer.  The area in our basement where we are storing things right now is about 62 degrees near the floor and 66 near the ceiling.  With the AC on this summer it can get cooler in there.  Winter time obviously is warmer because we can't keep the heat out of the area.  I think maybe I need to cut back on my onions.....we do most in mesh bags and the rest are sitting on wire shelving that is not a solid panel so air circulates a lot.
1 year ago
Hi, everyone, thanks for the comments so far, sorry I didn't give enough information.  I am VERY new to forums, like I've never done this before.  Giving info on the internet is always a cautious adventure to me.  Okay, so I live in central Iowa, always seems like it's very high humidity, and we are in year 4 of a drought.  I have been canning, freezing etc all my life with my family, but specifically with my husband, (who has an addiction to canning jars) for about 25 years I think.  We moved out to my family farm in 2016, rebuilt the house, didn't think about a root cellar which in hindsight was dumb.  I have 80 acres to my name.  5 of it is the house and outbuilding site.  The rest is corn and soybeans that I rent out because I'm not that type of farmer.  I now have 3 garden sites to grow to my hearts content.

Three years ago we decided to plant more onions, potatoes, garlic, and pumpkins to store over the winter to cut back even more on grocery bills.  We do pretty good till about January and then things start to head downhill quickly simply because we can't regulate the basement temp very well.  BTW I have to run a humidifier most of the winter as our new house was built so well if I don't it looks like my ceilings are bleeding water.

I try to keep air moving around the produce with a fan.  Around December when we see the potatoes start to take a turn I go into hashbrown mode and fill the freezer.  Onions end up frozen toward the end.  Maybe this is perfectly normal and produce shouldn't last months on end, but I remember my mom storing things for a long time.  So, I'm just trying to find something temporary and inexpensive while we explore something more permanent.

I have another option for the winter, but I hate to do it, I have a shed on the farm that my husband fixed up for me to have all my sewing, library, crafts in....it does have an AC and a space heater.  In the winter we keep the temperature at about 45 degrees when I'm not using it.  I imagine, we could clear out one side to store everything this year once the temperature starts dropping in about October and then we could see how things hold up.
1 year ago
Okay, so I am VERY new here.  I am a lifelong gardener and do great at the canning, freezing, dehydrating, etc.  But when it comes to long term storage I am completely stumped.  In my house in the basement we have a bump out area that we are wanting to turn into the root cellar.  Our goal, when we have the money, is to do a ventilation system through the foundation. Until that day we need to find a way to keep that area cool and humid.  Right now we framed it up and used black plastic.   We didn't leave space to ventilate so last year didn't last long on storage, and obviously it wasn't super cool anyway. I feel like we need to make sure there is space at the top of the black plastic to let out any heat rising up.  We kept a fan going to circulate air as we kept the heat out of it, but it was still too warm.  I think we can afford to insulate the ceiling, that shouldn't be hard.  But, I was wondering if a portable room AC unit would work to keep it cool this year.  I know that they really don't cool an area down much but it might be helpful.  I am storing onions, garlic, potatoes, and later this fall apples.  

Any direction and advice on how to create this space would be so appreciated.  Thanks.  
1 year ago