Carrots are a root vegetable that is valued for its versatility and a mass of beneficial properties.
Not without reason each summer resident takes several beds under the carrot - the vegetable is rather unpretentious in terms of cultivation, but it is strongly susceptible to rotting and wilting in winter.
Properly preserving carrots is sometimes more difficult than growing them. But with the right approach, the root crop will not give you trouble and will retain useful properties.
Features of the structure
To root well-preserved until the spring, it must have a certain structure and composition. Carrots intended for storage should have a large percentage of solids, sugars and carotene.
Particular attention should be paid to the shape of the vegetable. Experienced gardeners claim that carrots of medium size and conical shape are best kept. It is unacceptable to deposit a carrot with peel damage, dents, cuts. It will become unusable very quickly and can “infect” a healthy crop.
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Not all varieties of carrots are suitable for long-term storage. The main indicator characterizing the ability of the root for a long time to maintain useful qualities and not to deteriorate, is keeping quality. In turn, it depends on the rate of ripening of carrots and the estimated date of harvest.
The main principle is this: the later the carrot was planted and the later it ripened, the longer it will last. Therefore, it is worth choosing late-ripening varieties or varieties of medium maturity.
- Late-ripe carrots with good keeping quality - Valeria, Forto, Vita Long, Moscow Winter, Karlen, Flaccoro.
- Mid-season carrots - Incomparable, Nantes-4 and Callisto - is considered the best for the bookmark for the winter.
- Late maturing hybrid varieties - Tinga F1, Totem F1. In addition to keeping quality, they have excellent yield.
Important! Carrots intended for winter storage must be matured and harvested on time. In a mature root, the lower leaves of the tops begin to dry out.
About what varieties are suitable for storage, described in detail here.
Storage methods in the cellar
The cellar is an ideal winter storage for carrots. However, it is relevant only for private homes. But the owners of cottages, sheds or garages with an equipped cellar can use the method. Sometimes the owners of the apartments on the first floors of the houses manage to “supply” with a basement for storing vegetables and home-made preparations.
Special conditions must be observed in the cellar: the optimum temperature is about 2 degrees and the relative humidity is 90-95%. The room must be ventilated, but without an intensive supply of air, otherwise germination of the tops will begin.
How can you store in the cellar:
- In wooden or heavy cardboard boxes with lid - they are placed on a small stand that protects from moisture, 15 cm away from the walls.
- Onion Husk - carrots are placed in large bags, sprinkling it with husks, then each bag should be tied.
- In coniferous sawdust - boxes and other containers are used, carrots and needles are laid in layers.
- In a mixture of wet sand and chalk - the substance is poured into the box, there they lay the carrot with a thick tip upward.
- In plastic bags - in the bags make several holes at the bottom for draining condensate, place the crop on the shelves and stands, without tying the packaging.
Where is the best?
Where is the best to keep carrots and beets in the urban dwelling? Apartment owners are much more difficult to save a carrot until spring and choose a place to book a vegetable. There are several ways to store root crops in an apartment:
- Glazed loggia or balcony - they can be an alternative to the cellar. In this case, you can use the methods that are used for basement storage.
- Cool pantry.
- Fenced and protected stairwells.
- Fridge.
- Freezer.
- In cans in dried form.
How to do it?
The easiest way to save a carrot so that it does not wilt or deteriorate is to place it on a glazed loggia or balcony. But for this you need strict control over the temperature regime. If the room will freeze, the crop will freeze, becoming unfit for food. If the balcony is warm, the vegetables will quickly germinate and spoil.
Storage options on the balcony:
- Carrots are folded in wooden or cardboard boxes, and the fruits must not touch each other. You should also prepare wet sand and pour them roots.Sometimes ash is mixed into the sand - it has bactericidal properties.
- In the boxes put the unwashed root vegetables in layers - each layer is shifted by newspapers. The box is covered on top with plastic wrap to maintain the optimum level of humidity, on top - with a thick cloth.
- The method of harvesting carrots in onion peel, by analogy with storage in the cellar, can also be used in apartment conditions. But in this case, the vegetables may fade over time.
- In a wooden box loosely fit unwashed unpeeled carrots. The box is carefully wrapped in a quilt so that the air and the sun's rays do not fall inside. Top capacity can be covered with felt.
Prepare a creamy solution of clay. Each fruit is dipped in clay, dried in a natural way, folded in a plastic bag, tied. Clay creates an impermeable shell that prevents drying and penetration of microorganisms. To prepare a clay solution, clay is poured with water twice - the first time for swelling, the second time - in a day, before the formation of a liquid consistency.- Paraffin will help keep the carrot for a long time. It acts just like clay. It is necessary to melt a sufficient amount of paraffin (in accordance with the volume of the crop), lower each root crop, remove it and dry it. So you can make blanks not only for storage on the loggia, but also in the refrigerator.
- Root crop expanded into cardboard boxes with the roots of horseradish. For every 20 fruits, 1 medium horseradish rhizome is taken and evenly distributed in the tank. The drawer should be tightly closed during storage.
- Several carrots (2-3 pieces) and one small horseradish root are wrapped with cling film and placed on a balcony or loggia in any container.
- Sawdust is filled with a layer of 3-5 cm at the bottom of a deep box, then carrots are laid out, another layer of sawdust (1-2 cm) is placed on top, and so on until the container is filled.
- Storage in vacuum freezer bags is not able to preserve the freshness and integrity of the roots for a long time. But this method can be used if you want to preserve the harvest, for example, until the New Year holidays. Carrots are laid in impermeable bags and placed in the refrigerator or on the balcony.
Prepare a creamy solution of clay. Each fruit is dipped in clay, dried in a natural way, folded in a plastic bag, tied. Clay creates an impermeable shell that prevents drying and penetration of microorganisms. To prepare a clay solution, clay is poured with water twice - the first time for swelling, the second time - in a day, before the formation of a liquid consistency.Some owners experiment and use several storage methods at once. For example, stored in boxes together with the husk or clay-treated roots are placed in the sand.
If the carrots are few, you can use the closet for storage.. Pre-wipe the carrots, removing excess dirt and soil, wrap each fruit in a newspaper and put it arbitrarily in boxes.
An alternative method of storage can be called a drying method. You can dry the vegetable in a natural way - outdoors in dry sunny weather. And you can use kitchen appliances - microwave, oven, electric dryer. At the exit the crushed pieces which can be stored long in usual banks with covers turn out.
How to keep the carrot in the refrigerator, method number 1:
How to keep the carrot in the refrigerator, method number 2:
How to ensure the freshness of the vegetable longer?
To preserve carrots as long as possible, you need to properly prepare the harvest:
- Carrots are strictly prohibited to wash (about whether to wash carrots for storage, read here). The only exceptions are vegetables for drying and freezing.
- The whole batch of carrots is carefully inspected. Rotted, worn, damaged fruits are subject to rejection.
- Sorted specimens slightly dried in a natural way. Better - in the wind, and not in direct sunlight. It is necessary from time to time to turn the fruit.
- Observe the temperature and humidity in the storage room.
Practice shows that subject to the technology of preparation and storage of the root, carrots can be stored:
- 1 year - using paraffin, clay;
- half a year - in bags with onion peel, boxes of sand, ash or sawdust;
- 2-4 months - in plastic bags;
- 1-2 months - in a refrigerator.
Why do vegetables spoil?
Many owners make typical mistakes when storing root crops. This leads to premature deterioration of the product, loss of taste and useful properties.
- Why rots carrots? Indoor high humidity. In this case, the condensate accumulates on the fruit and provokes the proliferation of microbes.
Solution: to ventilate the room, equip the stand under the box or bag, periodically sort out the fruit.
- Why does a carrot sprout? The rules for pruning tops or temperature conditions (the room is too warm) are not followed.
Solution: cut the tops to the stem, move to a cooler room, periodically inspect the workpiece and sort out.
- Why carrots fade? Violated the rules for the assembly and drying of root vegetables, carrots overexposed in the sun or collected too early.
Solution: adopt our own mistakes and prevent a similar situation in the coming year.
Additional tips and warnings
- It is not recommended to store carrots in the same room with apples. Fruit secretes ethylene, which leads to the deterioration of carrots.
- Vegetables that are grown on the same plot for a long time and intensively supplemented with nitrogen fertilizers will not be stored for a long time.
- The time interval between harvesting and storage should be minimal - several days.
- Better stored thick and juicy fruits, and small and thin better to eat early.
Storing carrots is not an easy task, but doable. Adhering to the rules of harvesting and storage, you can provide seven vitamins for the whole winter.
