Do you grow your own potatoes or buy in bulk from the farmers market? Follow these five easy steps to keep your potatoes fresh all winter long.
I have an unheated corner in my basement that is perfect for storing potatoes for winter. This corner stays dark, cool, and performs like a root cellar. I have added a good-sized shelving area where I store the food preserved during the growing season. The shelves are filling up with baskets of onions, garlic, and canned tomato sauce, jelly, salsa, beans, carrots, grape juice, pickles, and applesauce.
I can’t help but feel a sense of pride and accomplishment as I look over the jars and baskets of homegrown bounty. Not only because we have this food to feed us but I also feel good knowing exactly where my food comes from and that it was grown with no chemicals.
The Next Harvest to Add to the Shelves is the Storing Potatoes
I harvest fresh potatoes here and there as needed for meals, but the majority of the tubers are left in the ground to mature fully. The potato foliage usually begins dying back in August sending the last of the plants energy beneath the ground to the tubers. I like to wait several weeks or longer after the foliage has died back completely to allow the skins toughen up. This will help protect the tubers from abrasions during harvest.
The big dig of the main crop of storing potatoes is in October before the ground freezes. I watch the weather closely and choose a warm, dry day after a period of little or no rain.
I dig carefully using a digging fork to loosen the soil and then sift through with my hands to pull out the tubers to avoid damaging them. The potatoes are placed in a garden cart. If the sun is out, I shade the cart because sunlight will cause the potatoes to turn green.
Occasionally, I will come across a few potatoes damaged by moles or voles, or accidentally stab one with the digging fork. Damaged potatoes should be kept separate from your storing potatoes because they are more likely to rot and possibly infect the rest of the tubers. So place these aside to be trimmed and eaten first.
5 Steps to Storing Potatoes for Winter
1. Find an Area Suitable for Storing Potatoes
Potatoes should be stored in a dark environment at about 45˚F to 50˚F (7˚C to 10˚C). The relative humidity should be around 95% to prevent them from drying out. I store potatoes in an unheated corner of the basement that stays dark, cool, and performs just like a root cellar. If you don’t have a basement, consider some of these other storing potato options at Mother Earth News.
2. Choose Potato Varieties that are Good for Storing
Some potato varieties known for their long term storage capabilities are Yukon Gold, Katahdin, Kennebec, and Yellow Finn. I grow Dark Red Norland, a mid-season variety and Kennebec, a late season variety. Kennebec lasts longer in storage so we try to consume the Dark Red Norland first. If you are purchasing from a farmers market, ask the growers which varieties they recommend for long term storing potatoes.
3. Cure the Potatoes Before Storing
Curing your potatoes toughens up the skin and helps extend the storage life. To cure, spread out the unwashed potatoes in seedlings trays or boxes lined with newspapers. Cover the trays with a dark towel to eliminate light but allow air to circulate and let them cure for several weeks in an area that is between 50-60˚F.
4. Pack Up the Potatoes for Storing
Store unwashed, cured tubers in a dark area in covered boxes or bins with some holes for ventilation. I store my potatoes in recycled paper boxes nestled in shredded paper recycled from bills and other paperwork. I cut a few holes in the sides of the boxes for air circulation, add a layer of shredded paper, and spread out the potatoes, cover with more shredded paper, and continue until the box is full.
As you pack up your potatoes, lightly brush off excess dirt and inspect them carefully. Tubers with broken skin or damage should be separated and used immediately instead of stored. Once the box is full, place the cover on it, add a label, and store in a cool, dark area. Ideal storage conditions for potatoes are at 45˚F to 50˚F (7˚C to 10˚C) and 80-90% relative humidity. Can last 4-9 months in storage depending on the variety.
5. Check on the Stored Potatoes
Every few weeks I look through the boxes to remove any potatoes that may begin to rot. Usually you can tell by the scent if there is one in the box. If you notice a musky, sour dirt smell, you should go through the box to remove the rotten potato before it infects the others.
Storing potatoes this way will help keep them fresh for several months depending on the temperature and humidity. Ours usually last until March before they begin sprouting. Sprouted potatoes can be planted in spring as long as they look healthy and the previous season was disease free.
Additional Tips:
- Store potatoes separate from onions and fruits. These give off ethylene gas that can cause your potatoes to sprout prematurely.
- Keep stored potatoes in the dark. Exposure to light will cause a build-up of Solanine, a chemical that causes potatoes to turn green, produces a bitter taste, and if eaten in large quantity can cause illness. Trim off potato skin that has turned green. If the green has penetrated into the potato, throw it away.
Want to Learn How to Grow Potatoes?
You will find everything you need to start growing potatoes in my PDF eBook, Grow a Good Life Guide to Growing Potatoes. Whether you are striving for a few gourmet fingerling potatoes or a large crop for winter food storage, this guide will show how you can grow your own, organic, homegrown potatoes. Click here to learn more.
Further Reading:
- 14 Crops for Winter Food Storage
- Sourcing Seed Potatoes Locally
- Over 6 Different Potato Planting Methods
- Planting Potatoes the Grow Biointensive Way
- 9 Crops to Grow for Food Storage
- 8 Great Tips for Growing Potatoes
Good planning is key to a successful vegetable garden.
Whether you are new to growing your own food or have been growing a vegetable garden for years, you will benefit from some planning each year. You will find everything you need to organize and plan your vegetable garden in my PDF eBook, Grow a Good Life Guide to Planning Your Vegetable Garden.
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Lynn C Behnke
I recently discussed root cellaring as part of the vegetable class I was teaching, and a man asked why his father had always put little containers of lye at the end of each board in the root cellar where he stored his potatoes. I can’t find anything about using lye in root cellars. Do you have any ideas?
©Rachel Arsenault
Lynn, Maybe he meant lime? Containers of hydrated lime were often used to help adjust root cellar humidity levels.
Amanda
You state two different temp ranges for storing….first 45 to 50 degrees , then later it says 32-40. Which is it???
©Rachel Arsenault
Mine store well at 45˚F to 50˚F (7˚C to 10˚C).
cecile jolet
I live in SE Louisiana, where we get a lot of rain and the weather doesn’t turn 40 degrees until December or January. No basements in our area. Potatoes are dig in June in our area, from them till October, temps go into the high 80’s too 100 degrees during the day. We love potatoes and would love to have a root cellar but we have a very high water table and lots and lots of rainy weather! We do not have any way to keep any part of the house, except the refrigerator as cold as 40 degrees and that gets a lot of light from normal usage and not much room for potatoes. I would love to build a cement root cellar above ground, but have no way to keep it cool! Any ideas?
©Rachel Arsenault
Cecile, You really need an area that is naturally cool and dark to store potatoes. The only thing I can suggest is planting potatoes in the fall and allowing them to stay in the ground as long as possible.
Rodney S Blevins
You could try building an above ground cellar by using 12 inch cinder block filling them with insulation and then laying up the outside with river rock or field stone. make sure you have a well insulated door.
Mark Spears
I live in North Louisiana, not much different. I don’t try to store raw potatoes for long term. I par-cook and freeze some as new potatoes. Other larger potatoes, I let them dry out and season in the dark, cardboard box works, then wash and boil, refrigerator first, then vacuum package in foodsaver, then freezer for use in the winter. Of course, I would grow more potatoes if I lived where I could have a root cellar, but I take advantage of modern convenience like foodsaver and deep freezers.
Ray White
My question regarding curing potatoes is where in the world do you find a cool, dark place with high humidity to cure them in. I don’t have a basement or root cellar and my potato crop is already ready for harvest (June 25). I think dehydrating of canning is my only option, which is a drag as i’d love to be able to keep them in storage. I’m in zone 8b in Arizona and don’t have a root cellar either.
©Rachel Arsenault
I wish I had an easy answer. You really need an area that is naturally cool and dark to store potatoes. You could try to time your potatoes to finish growing later in the season. Then let the potatoes stay in the ground and harvest as needed. Otherwise, canning is probably your best option.
Pam pritchett
What do u suggest for a 1000 lb crop of Kennebec I usually let them dry and put them in burlaps bags any other suggestions
©Rachel Arsenault
Pam, That is an amazing amount of potatoes. Burlap bags are a great way to store potatoes. Just keep them in a dark place. The burlap is breathable and can let some light in. Discard any potatoes that turn green.
Sarah
Hi! Do you have any issues with rodents getting in your root cellar? I have the prefect set up for a root cellar in our basement in our 100 year old house. But the construction of the house and area has led us to get mice in the basement. We bait but they still get in time to time. Would putting cardboard boxes in a large plastic cabinet mess up the amount of air flow needed for the potatoes? Thanks!
©Rachel Arsenault
Sarah, I do get mice from time to time in our old house. The cats keep them in check. They haven’t got into my storage foods. The best defense is to keep the food up and away from the floors and walls. As long as your cabinet has some ventilation, placing the boxes in the cabinet will help keep the mice away. Mice can get into tiny holes, so use hardware cloth on your vents to prevent the mice from finding a way in.
Ange
How do we cure them?
©Rachel Arsenault
Hi Ange, Cure potatoes in a cool and dark area by spreading the tubers out into seedling trays lined with newspaper. I cover the trays with a dark towel to eliminate light but allow air to circulate and let them cure for several weeks.
Braum van
I have a hole 2 feet deep in the ground line it with plastic and straw fill it up with potatoes and cover it with straw and 10 ” of dirt I eat potatoes ontl Marchbraum van New Mexico
©Rachel Arsenault
That sounds like a great storage system. Thanks for sharing.
Tessa
I just sent that article home to my husband. He’s stuck with the potato harvest this year while the kids and I are with family out west. Thank you for the great tips!
dockrol
The article on potatoes, referring to storage, I don’t have a basement and we get some snow which means temps sometimes dip to 30 degrees. What would be your suggestion for me on storing potatoes.
©Rachel Arsenault
Ideally, potatoes should be stored in a dark environment at about 45˚F to 50˚F. Even if you don’t have these conditions or a basement, you can still store potatoes for a while. Do you have a garage, or unheated nook or closet in your home? Some place that stays pretty cool and dark but doesn’t get below freezing? Mother Earth News has some other ideas too in this article: http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/food-storage-zm0z12aszcom.aspx#axzz3ELccIU9q
schwamberger
my father and grandpa dug small hole in garden close to house lined it with plastic covered with leaves and then mounded it up with dirt ( for turnips would it work for potatoes