Storing potatoes

[Stonehead]

I've only just noticed the article Making a potato clamp and other ways of storing Vegetables and thought I'd make a few suggestions.

Before storing potatoes, they need to be dry. When we lift ours, we spread them out in the sun and leave them for a couple of hours, then roll them over and leave them for another couple of hours. (This is not long enough for dangerous levels of solanine to develop, but is long enough for the dirt to dry and be brushed off.)

We then bring the potatoes in and lay them on wire racks or sheets of cardboard. We place a couple of bricks here and there, then lay several layers of thick cloth, carboard or hessian over the top, ensuring there is good airflow while keeping the potatoes dark. Do not use plastic as it makes the potatoes sweat.

After a week or so, the potatoes will be reasonably dry and ready for sorting - as described in potato clamp article.

While the details of how to build a clamp are spot on, I'd add one proviso. Do NOT rely on a clamp if your local temperatures drop below about -5C every night. The cold will penetrate and freeze the potatoes - they can be thawed and used for animal feed, but are no good for human consumption.

The box storage method is what we use, but with some modifications.

We do not use wooden boxes as rats eat their way in - even with 3/4in planks. Instead, we use coal bunkers (10cwt for our large amounts, but smaller ones are available).

Air flow is critical, so you should make a row of 5mm holes all the way around the base of the storage box or bunker and have a few more in the centre of the lid. If using a coal bunker, you can also replace the sliding hatch with a square of strong metal mesh - rivet it in place.

Speaking of rivets, it's worth reinforcing the seams and joins on a coal bunker with rivets every 5cm or so.

Finally, it's well worth sitting a small dehumidifier in the top of your potato store for about a week after you first fill it. This will help dry out any remaining dampness.

After that, check the potatoes weekly and if you find condensation on the underside of the lid, improve the air flow and put the dehumidifer back in for a couple of days. You could also put a couple of small 12v computer fans in the base of the store (blowing inwards) and power them from a small solar panel or wind turbine.

Potatoes must be kept cool and dry to store well.

Hope this helps.

PS Coal bunkers also make very good grain and feed storage bins (just rivet the sliding door shut) and are a lot cheaper than similarly sized feed bins! Compare the bunkers above with the feed bins at Ascott and Solway Feeders. 5cwt is rooughly 250kg and 10cwt is roughly 500kg. And rats can eat their way through the sides of plastic 200-litre drums being recycled as feed bins...

[Wombat]

Thanks Stoney,

I was kind of wondering how the blue blazes you were going to store over a tonne of spuds. Mind you the dry part is easy over here, but the "cool" bit not quite so!

Nev

[dibnah]

I like the idea of a bunker full of spuds

[Stonehead]

I like the idea of a bunker full of spuds

You should see my spud gun...