An interesting way to preserve food.

So last night my family and I went to visit some of my aunts and one uncle. While we were there they got to talking about how they used to preserve apples, potatoes , cabbage heads ect during the winter months. Here is what they said they would do.
They would dig a hole about 5 feet deep. Line it with tar paper or another from of water repellent. Then they would lay straw down on the bottom of the hole and then place whatever vegetables or certain fruits. Cover that with some more straw, then cover it all back up with dirt. They said that method would keep the vegetables as fresh as the day they picked them whenever they dug them back up. They did this probably 40+ years ago when I believe they didn't have a freezer back then.

Steeley, haven't heard about all the veggies but folks around here been doing that for years for potatos. BUT they would put the paper down under the house, straw, spuds, straw. course this is for houses that had crawl spaces.

I have just talked to a friend about this

They say squirrels can remember where the put all thier nuts, but I don't know about old people. Thank goodness for the gps. Hey how about fruit and veggie geocaches.

This is not an unusual method here in Romania in the countryside , I remember when I was a kid people in my grandparent vilage using this metod , especialy for potatoes but it works for other things allso .

That's nifty, I'll have to remember that. I take it it only works for vegetables and the like? probably can't throw a steak down a hole and cover it in straw and expect it to be edible, right?

ECF, depends on how cold the hole is! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

...or how hungry you are! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

It can be used for meet to . You have to dig a deeper hole and in the winter fill it with big blocks of ice ,cover the ice blocks with straw and dry corn plant (dont know how you call the shaft on witch corn grows) , and this way you can preserve meet during the hot months .

Corn Stalks Vald. Also it can be covered with saw dust. The tiny pieces of wood that you get when you use a saw to cut wood.

Oh cool, can't wait to try it out <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />