Checking the cellar through winter

In short

• Weekly round, 10–15 minutes: thermometer, humidity, nose, look, rotten out, write it down.
• Open the vents when it is colder outside than inside, and not below roughly −5 °C (23 °F) outside. Close them when it is warmer outside or in hard frost.
• The target is 0–4 °C for roots, cabbage and fruit, 4–6 °C for potatoes; below 0 °C is an emergency.
• Rotten produce out the same day, with the neighbouring fruit and the sand around it.
• No poison: mesh on the openings, traps, a cat. Poison does not go among food.
• At the end of the season: empty, clean, limewash, dry, and write down what kept and what did not.

What's inside

Chapters

1. The rhythm of checks
2. The weekly round
3. Air and temperature
4. Frost in the cellar
5. Warm spells and thaw
6. Rodents and other uninvited guests
7. Mould and cleanliness
8. Rotation and use
9. End of the season: cleaning and preparing
10. Annual review and plan
11. Common mistakes
12. Printable checklist

Worksheets

• Weekly checklist
• Monthly inventory
• Use calculator to the end of the season
• Cellar check calendar
• Problem log
• Annual review