CARROT SHELF LIFE: IS IT APPROPRIATE TO PLANT FOR THE WINTER, HOW TO KEEP KOREAN HARVESTING FOR A LONG TIME AND HOW TO ENSURE SEED AVAILABILITY FOR A LONG TIME?

For many gardeners, storing carrots is a problem. Not so difficult to grow a crop, but not everyone can save it in full during the winter.

Especially a lot of questions about the safety of these vegetables arise in novice farmers. In adverse weather, it quickly becomes covered with rot, mold, and if you do not take urgent measures, the harvest may disappear in a few days.

How to save carrots long after it was removed from the ground? This article outlines several methods recommended by experienced growers, from which you can choose a suitable option for yourself.

What varieties will be able to keep fresh for a long time?

For long-term savings of these vegetables, late-ripening varieties are best suited.

Among the middle categories, there are also carrot varieties to be stored for a long time, but many of them, as a rule, do not possess taste qualities.

Late ripening categories include those that mature after 115-135 days. after the appearance of seedlings. These varieties are cold-resistant, not so susceptible to disease, so they and better safety.

Under favorable conditions, late-ripening carrots persist until July, and at the same time do not lose their taste. Typically, these categories of vegetables oblong spiky forms. The following carrot varieties are the most popular and in demand:

Queen of autumn

Excellent category from Altai breeders, no wonder it was so named.

Root crops grown on fertile soil, as a rule, exceed the traditional characteristics, since the yield is about 9 kg / m²., weight - 240 gr., and length - 25 cm.

Dolanka

Representative from Polish breeders, well preserved until June. When the soil is infected with carrot fly larvae, this variety will be a good choice for the next planting. Fruits are average, weight - from 140 gr.

Flaccoro

Attracts the attention of gardeners for its yield (from 8.5 kg / m²), has long roots up to 27 cm and weighs about 200 grams.

Mid-season varieties for long-term savings include:

Moscow winter

High-yielding category can maintain their qualities for up to 10 months.

Shantane

Despite the average ripeness, the fruit has sweet taste, it is kept quite well for 8-10 months.

Bookmark for a long period

After removing the roots from the ground, the tops are removed with a sharp knife, leaving as little as possible the roots - 1-2 mm.
Then it is dried one or two days under a canopy, without removing the remnants of the earth from it, and the more so it is not worth washing the roots.

Important! Before laying the vegetables in a pit, cellar or basement, disinfection with a medicament of copper sulfate is required.

In bulk in the cellar or pit

This method is old and simple, but the yield loss can be tangible.

In the cellar or pit need to spread burlap, plywood or dry boards.
Then put carrots on this place.
When placing root crops in bulk, the height of the collar must be made on the basis of the properties of the carrot category and the conditions of ventilation, as well as the size of the room.

Of great importance is humidity, which should be 90-95%, and the rate of laying of root crops (from the collection should pass no more than two days). And also the cellar with this method of storage, is pre-cooled to + 1 ... +4 degrees at least one day before the harvest.

Subsequently, this temperature is kept until the end of the savings.

Besides from time to time you need to sort out and remove rotten fruit.. Store this way can be 5-8 months.

In sand or coniferous sawdust

This method of keeping fruits is productive, but also time consuming.

Before laying vegetables it is necessary to prepare boxes, each for 4-6 buckets of root crops.
Pour a layer of sawdust or sand 5 cm thick at the bottom, then lay out the carrots, pile the same bulk material on top.
Thus, this procedure is carried out until the box is filled.
At the same time, sawdust must be coniferous, because they contain essential oils that protect against the appearance of rot and fungus.
On top of the container should be tightly covered with a wooden lid.

Shelf life up to 12 months.

We offer to watch a video about the storage of carrots in the sand, sawdust and other materials:

In open boxes and baskets

This way of keeping carrots is interesting because of its availability and at the same time a guaranteed method.

It is necessary to prepare a clay solution with a viscosity similar to sour cream.
Then dip each carrot into it and put it out to dry.
With this method, the vegetables should dry for at least two days in a draft, until they are covered with a hard crust.
Once the clay has hardened, the roots are laid in wooden boxes or baskets.

In this way carrots are well preserved for 10-12 months.

On the balcony

How to save carrots for city dwellers in apartments? Boxes with sawdust, sand or onion peel are the most suitable storage method.

Vegetables are laid in layers, alternating them with bulk material, covered with a lid and removed on a warmed balcony, loggia or in the pantry.
In case the balcony is poorly insulated, then an old blanket, mattress or other suitable material is put on the boxes with vegetables.

Depending on the temperature created, carrots can be stored on the balcony for 5 to 8 months.

Packing in the fridge

Placing carrots for a long time in the refrigerator, you need:

Hold open on the bottom shelf so that it dries and cools. Thus, it will be possible to avoid condensate, which can cause rot of root crops.
Then the vegetables should be packaged in plastic bags, preferably not more than two or three varieties in one.
Packages tightly tied and placed in a compartment for vegetables.

Keeping carrots fresh is no longer than 2-3 months.

Using this method of storage, you will provide yourself with a tasty and healthy vegetable for several months.

After being introduced to carrot storage, it is important to know about the terms as they differ depending on the savings method.

As you can see, the most time-consuming ways to preserve vegetables are the most productive. With savings in sawdust or sand, root crops spoil only 4-6%, while in bulk storage - up to 30%.

Planting seeds for the winter

When buying carrot seeds, it should be borne in mind that the period for germination of these vegetables is 2-3 years. At the same time seedlings appear on the 10-12 day after planting seeds. And also it is necessary to take into account that the longer the shelf life, the lower the germination of such seeds. To speed up the germination of seeds, it is recommended to soak them in the nutrient fluid.

On a note! According to experienced gardeners, it is safest to use the carrot seeds of the past harvest.

There is also a method of winter sowing, when at the end of November the grooves are deepened by 5 centimeters, and from above they are “warmed” by humus. At the same time, the number of seeds must be increased by 20-30%. This trick will allow you to get fresh root vegetables in late June. The harvest of winter carrots for long-term storage is not intended.

How to extend shelf life in Korean?

This method of preservation does not provide long-term storage in a plastic container - a maximum of two weeks. In addition, closer to the expiration date, the snack loses some of the taste. If carrots are often used as an ingredient in salads, pizzas, or sandwiches, they can be frozen and then taken to the required amount.

Conclusion

Carrots are an indispensable vegetable product in the preparation of a daily diet., besides, it is useful. Therefore, to use it all year round, it is important to save the roots. There are many methods of carrot maintenance; you just need to choose the most suitable option for yourself that is suitable for your living conditions.