VEGETABLE GARDENING 
1 04 
254. Harvesting vegetables to be stored. — Many vege= 
tables possess better keeping qualities when placed in 
storage before they have fully matured. This is particu- 
larly true of cabbage and the salad crops. Losses in 
storage are often due to diseases which have developed 
in the field. When such infections are known to exist 
and to be a common source of trouble in storage, the 
safer course is to dispose of the crop without attempting 
to preserve it for later marketing. Too much care cannot 
be taken in handling the crops to be stored, for every 
bruise invites decay and mars the appearance of the pro- 
duct when placed on the market. 
255. Storage houses. — With the rapid expansion of 
commercial vegetable gardening, storage houses of large 
capacity have become a necessity. The character of con- 
struction of storage houses depends mainly upon the 
kinds of crops to be stored, and hence there are many 
types of storage houses. In New Jersey and southward 
there are many sweet potato houses, large and small, and 
varying considerably in form of construction ; in cabbage 
districts, houses are built especially for this crop, while 
the celery and onion growers build houses which they 
regard most satisfactory for their own specialties. (See 
Chapter XXI.) 
256. Pits and outdoor cellars are used extensively for 
the storage of vegetables. They are inexpensive to con- 
struct and may be built by growers whose operations 
are not large enough to justify the erection of commodi- 
ous houses. (See Chapter XXL) 
257. The house cellar. — The cellar of the residence is 
often used to preserve vegetables. As a rule it provides 
unsatisfactory conditions, especially if it contains a fur- 
nace, because the air is then too warm and dry. These 
difficulties may be overcome to some extent by separating 
the furnace room from the storage rooms by brick, stone 
or concrete walls; the pipes may be covered with asbes- 
