Raising the Root Cellar: Crops for Winter Storage

Reader Contribution by Charlyn Ellis
Published on January 13, 2016
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On January first, the seed catalogs come out of hiding. They have been flowing in for several weeks, but I like to keep them back until the holidays are almost over, giving me something to look forward to in early January, when the world is still dark and muddy. The back garden is the low spot for the entire block. It is often flooded during heavy winter rains and not always accessible in January, so it is a good time to start planning for next year’s garden.

My garden consists of nine raised beds, four-by-ten feet, which hold annual crops. There are also three raised beds for permanent plantings: blueberries, asparagus, and herbs. We supplement the space using large black nursery pots, which move into the front driveway for tomato plants in the spring, and wine barrels, which hold currants, a bay tree, and an apple.

We just added a greenhouse, which has one three by eight foot bed and space for various tubs and planters. And we are about to build a bed on the south side of the house, which will replace the three barrels there at the moment, giving us a little more planting space and the chance for roots to touch earth. When it is all planted, I am able to harvest our dinner vegetables from the back yard from June until October and supplement for another month on either side. With careful planning, there is also some space for storage crops.

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