How to store potatoes in the same cellar with apples and is it possible to do so?

Potatoes are our “second bread”. Everyone who has even a small garden grows it, but not everyone knows how to preserve this wealth until the next harvest without loss. Therefore, we will tell you if it is possible keep in one cellar potatoes and other vegetables and fruits (apples, carrots, etc.) and we will share practical advice from experienced gardeners.

Can potatoes be stored next to vegetables or fruits?

For better preservation of fruits and vegetables, follow the principle of compatibility.

Consider the following important factors:

• store potatoes with vegetables and fruits that have the same peel thickness and a similar shelf life;
• It is important that they do not release substances that accelerate potato germination, absorb excess moisture and not deteriorate due to its presence.

Do not store apples in the same room as potatoes, as they emit ethylene, which promotes active germination. This accelerates the ripening of tubers and contributes to the partial loss of nutrients. And the apples themselves become completely unappetizing, as they absorb the smell of potatoes, and their keeping quality deteriorates. Storing apples in a cellar with potatoes is possible if you place them in different boxes and place them away from each other.

It is also not advisable to store potatoes and carrots together. Its shell is more sensitive to surface damage and changes in humidity.

Attention! To ensure that potatoes are preserved properly, select only healthy, mature tubers.

Is there a difference between storing in one room or a box?

Recent research by scientists has shown that it is much more effective to store each culture in a separate container and place it in such a way that they do not come into contact with each other. But even in this case there is a problem: you will have to think about the release of volatile substances.

Among them there are also useful ones, which destroy fungus and protect against rot, thereby extending the shelf life of vegetables. These are phytoncides. If you add the top two layers of root vegetables that release these substances to a box of potatoes, the storage period will increase significantly.

How to prepare a cellar for storing potatoes along with apples

Check the room in which the products will be stored for compliance with the following requirements:

1. Height - at least 2.2 m. With a lower ceiling, air humidity will increase and condensation will begin to form.
2. The cellar should be well ventilated. If there is no natural ventilation, install fans.
3. Room temperature - from 0°C to 6-8°C.
4. The room has been disinfected. Whiten the walls with the following composition: for 1 kg of slaked lime, take 100 g of copper sulfate and dilute it in 700 ml of water.

What crops can potatoes be stored with?

Potatoes can be stored with horseradish, radish, and beets, since they are identical in type of peel and storage conditions. It is acceptable, but not advisable, to store turnips and carrots with potatoes, since their skin is thinner. Carrots are usually sprinkled with wet sand, which is not suitable for potatoes.

The proximity of beets and radishes, which, thanks to their thick peels, have increased shelf life, is beneficial for potato tubers. Beet roots in a box with potatoes will retain excess moisture and prevent them from rotting.And radish, containing phytoncides, will protect the tubers from mold, mildew and pathogenic bacteria. Horseradish has similar properties.

Attention! Constantly monitor the humidity of the room and ventilate it, otherwise even the bactericidal properties of stored products will not help.

What crops are prohibited?

Apples and other fruits that emit a sweet smell should not be stored in the same room with potatoes. If there is no other choice, at least place the boxes with these fruits away from the potatoes.

Also, due to different temperature requirements, you cannot keep onions, cabbage, garlic, pumpkin, zucchini, cucumbers and tomatoes in the same room with potatoes.

What happens if you store these foods together?

If you ignore the rules for storing potatoes with other vegetables, this will certainly lead to negative consequences:

• an unpleasant aftertaste will appear;
• the potatoes will sprout;
• the tubers will soften and rot.

Advice from experienced gardeners

Experienced gardeners, based on many years of experience, advise:

1. Before winter laying gather the ripe harvest definitely in dry weather. After this, dry the vegetables (but not in the sun), sort them and treat them with fungicides to prevent fungus.
2. Potato sort, getting rid of damaged and diseased tubers.
3. It is better to first put it in the shed and keep it there until the air temperature drops to about +5°C. Only then transfer the vegetable in a cellar or basement.
4. Potatoes store better if they are topped with onion peels or mint.
5. Mixing tubers with dried wormwood or common wormwood will protect against rot.
6. Potatoes can be stored much longer with ginger root.
7. If you sprinkle the potatoes with crushed garlic, they will not rot.For 1 ton of potatoes - 1 kg of garlic.
8. Tubers will be preserved better if boxes add fern or elderberry.

Conclusion

The issue of proper storage of vegetables and fruits is no less important than the issue of growing them. If you neglect the rules for storing tubers, all your painstaking work will be in vain.

Take the advice of experienced gardeners and you will avoid unnecessary crop losses.