ROOT CELLARS AND STORAGE HOUSES 87 



products that are injured by freezing. The crops which are thus 

 stored are cabbage, squashes, onions, sweet potatoes, Irish pota- 

 toes, and celery. The general principles governing the construc- 

 tion of storage houses for the different vegetables are practically 

 the same. The houses are usually built aboveground, or as bank 

 structures, with only a part of the basement below the general 

 surface of the ground. The materials of construction are deter- 

 mined by locality and by the proposed cost of the structure, and 

 may be stone, concrete, brick, or wood. The walls must, of course, 

 be made as nearly frost proof as possible. For brick structures, 

 the bricks are laid so as to provide a dead-air space in the wall, 

 furring strips are fastened to the bricks on the inside, and the wall 

 is lined with paper and matched lumber. If stone or concrete is 

 used in the construction of the walls, the same plan is followed. In 

 frame structures, 2x6 inch or 2 x 8 inch studding is employed, 

 and a paper partition is placed between the studding so that the 

 space between will be divided into two chambers when the siding, 

 ceiling, and linings are put on. It is customary to place sheeting, 

 a layer of paper, and weatherboarding on the outside of the stud- 

 ding ; and on the inside matched lumber, furring strips, paper, 

 and another layer of matched lumber, thus making three dead-air 

 spaces in the wall. Such structures, built entirely, aboveground, 

 are practically frost proof. They are usually found in the extreme 

 northern potato regions of the United States. The precaution to 

 be taken in the storage of perishable products in such buildings is 

 to keep the vegetables from contact with the outside walls and to 

 provide stoves for use in the severest weather. 



Sweet-potato storage house. The sweet-potato house is built 

 after the manner just described, but in the region in which sweet 

 potatoes are grown it is not necessary to provide so many dead-air 

 spaces in the outside walls. Sweet potatoes are stored in crates or 

 in bulk in bins. When stored in bins they are kept from contact 

 with the outside wall by a slat partition which is placed far enough 

 from the outside wall to provide a passageway between it and the 

 wall. Eighteen inches is the customary distance for this offset. 



Sweet potatoes are harvested as soon as the frost has injured 

 the vines, and are allowed to dry as thoroughly as possible in the 

 field. They are then carefully gathered in bushel crates or small 



