We have a very old house with a root cellar. Does anyone know what you can/should store in it and how long it will last?

My grandparents had one for years...they kept their potatoes and other root type veggies in there.....and they also kept all their canned goods in it.(canned beets,carrots etc)things harvested from their garden and jams and stuff.

__________________

you can store just about anything... just don't store onions and potatoes together.

As for how long things will last is internally dependent on one or several of many factors.

Average temp
average humiduity level
average light in the cellar
how old the produce was when you put it in there.
How you store the items (carrots in a bag from the store? Or carrots in a bucket of sand, etc?

You can check out books on root celaars from the library and see what you are willing to do and try.

Here is a good one
Amazon.com: Root Cellaring: Natural Cold Storage of Fruits & Vegetables: Books: Mike Bubel,Nancy Bubel


good luck