Potato storage rules: can it be washed before laying

It's nice to dig even large potatoes in the fall. But it is not enough to grow an enviable harvest. It is also important to properly prepare it for storage in order to preserve it without loss until spring. One of the most common questions that gardeners ask is whether it is necessary to wash potatoes before laying on storage... Some fear that this could ruin the entire crop.

In the article, we will figure out whether you need to wash potatoes before storing for the winter and which tubers are better stored - washed or unwashed.

Is it acceptable to store washed potatoes

Can washed potatoes be left for the winter? Yes, you can, especially if it was dug up in rainy weather. However, it is important to thoroughly dry the tubers before laying.

The conditions in the storage are of decisive importance for the safety of the crop: the optimal indicators are temperature from +2 to + 4 ° C and humidity - 80-90%.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Washing Potatoes

Is it possible to wash potatoes before storing them, we figured out. Now we list the main advantages and disadvantages of storing tubers washed.

Benefits:

1. Washing off the dirt allows you to immediately assess the condition of the potatoes. All defects are clearly visible on the washed peel (scratches, cuts, foci of rot, etc.). Just a few rotten potatoes in the cellar will destroy all healthy specimens.
2. It is more pleasant to deal with washed potatoes when cooking; it does not pollute the kitchen, balcony or loggia. Clean vegetables have an attractive presentation and surplus harvest will be easy to sell.
3. Cleaning and processing the cellar after storing washed potatoes takes much less time. No need to clean up the rest of the earth.

This method also has disadvantages:

1. If you wash it carelessly, the peel can be easily damaged. During further storage, the infection penetrates through scratches into the tubers.
2. It is difficult to dry washed tubers with high quality after washing, especially with a large number of them.
3. Washing the potatoes will take a lot of water, time and effort, as well as drying it later.

Shelf life of washed and unwashed potatoes

The shelf life of washed and unwashed tubers does not differ, provided that all potatoes have been thoroughly dried.

It is also important to carefully examine the tubers before sending them to cellar... Only absolutely healthy specimens are laid for winter storage without damage, signs of disease and foci of rot.

Washing technology before storing

Considering the serious labor costs of washing and drying the vegetable, as well as the cost of water, it makes sense to wash the entire crop only if the tubers are literally covered with damp earth. This happens if the cleaning was carried out in wet weather.

Otherwise, it is enough to dry the potatoes and remove excess soil by hand when sorting and placing in boxes.

Here's how to wash potatoes before storing:

1. For washing, we choose a large container, for example, an old bath. If you use a basin, then holes can be made in its bottom - this will simplify the process.
2. Pour cold water into a container and put potatoes in small portions. Gently stir for some time with your hands, without damaging the peel. We change the water after each batch.
3. We lay out clean potatoes in one layer on a prepared surface: wooden flooring or metal sheets. It is good to use unnecessary cardboard or cloth, changing and drying it from time to time.Such a substrate will quickly absorb excess moisture.
4. For drying, choose a ventilated place in the shade or partial shade. In the open air, tubers dry out in 4-8 hours. Turn them periodically to dry evenly.

We put the vegetables in boxes or bags and send them to a cool place.

Council. During washing, it is convenient to immediately sort the tubers into large, medium and planting ones. Also discard sick and injured specimens immediately.

The clean and thoroughly dried potatoes are now ready for further processing prior to storage.

Storage preparation

Before sending the crop to storage, it is carefully examined and sorted.

Tubers intended for planting for the next season are stacked separately. The rest of the potatoes are sorted by size. Medium tubers last the longest, large ones a little less. The specimens damaged during digging are not sent to the cellar at all. They are processed first.

Potatoes prepared for laying for the winter are exceptionally whole, dry and healthy tubers. IN cellar vegetables with signs of disease, damaged or scratched should not fall.

Need to know. Only a few sick potatoes, caught in the total mass, can spoil the entire crop in a short time.

Sorted and dried vegetables are placed in small boxes or bags and left in a cool place for several days. Then the crop is transferred to a cellar or basement.

How to store washed potatoes: optimal conditions

Store washed potatoes for the winter in the same conditions as unwashed ones. The culture shows the maximum maturation period if the temperature is from +2 to + 4 ° C and air humidity is 80-90%.

As the temperature rises, the potatoes begin to sprout and flabby. Harmful substances accumulate in the vegetable, and it is no longer possible to eat it.

Under the influence of negative temperatures or storage at 0 ° C, the starch in the tubers is converted into sugar, and the vegetable acquires a sweetish taste. However, short-term action of small negative temperatures does not lead to such consequences.

In a cellar or basement

A cellar or basement is suitable for storing potatoes. Before laying vegetables, the room is cleaned of the remnants of last year's harvest, dried, ventilated, and disinfected. For disinfection, a solution of lime, copper sulfate or a sulfuric block is used.

Wooden boxes and boxes for storing vegetables, as well as flooring and racks, are treated with potassium permanganate solution and thoroughly dried in the sun.

Attention! The cellar or basement must have good thermal insulation to protect food from frost and high temperatures.

On the balcony or loggia

In urban conditions, potatoes are stored on balconies and loggias. It is convenient for these purposes to use wooden boxes insulated with materials with waterproofing properties.

Make such a box you can do it yourself from wooden boards or thick plywood. The best option is two boxes of different sizes, inserted one into the other. The void between them is filled with foam, dry sawdust or other suitable material.

If you don't have the time or desire to build the box yourself, get a ready-made thermo container for the balcony. On sale there are boxes and bags with thermostats, in which vegetables are successfully stored even at -40 ° C.

Common mistakes when storing potatoes

Let's list the most common mistakes that lead to spoilage of stored vegetables:

1. Wrong choice of variety for storage in the cellar. Only late and mid-season ones are laid for the winter. It is they who will lie until spring without loss. Early ripe potatoes will last until November at best, even under ideal conditions.
2. Storing undried potatoes. If you put wet vegetables in the cellar, this will inevitably lead to the early appearance of rot and damage to the crop.
3. Poor quality tubers.Only healthy and undamaged potatoes will be stored for a long time. When sorting, specimens with the slightest signs of rot, scratches, cuts are ruthlessly removed.
4. Storing tubers in large piles. Vegetables are best distributed in small boxes, boxes or bags. So it is more convenient to use them and periodically go through them.
5. Storage in the same container with other vegetables. Only beets can be kept in one box or bag of potatoes. It is laid out on top to absorb excess moisture.
6. Violation of the temperature regime. Air temperatures above + 4 ° C or below + 2 ° C have a negative effect on keeping quality. In the first case, the vegetables flabby and sprout, in the second they freeze slightly.
7. Neglecting periodic inspections of vegetables in storage. Inspecting your supplies from time to time, it is easy to spot a spoiled potato in time and remove it from the general heap.

By avoiding these mistakes, you will ensure the safety of vegetables until spring.

Conclusion

How best to store potatoes - washed or not, everyone decides for himself. When choosing a storage method, they are guided by the volume of the crop, the availability of a sufficient amount of water for washing and an area for drying. Washing does not affect shelf life provided it is dry properly.