Pumpkin is a healthy and tasty vegetable. To be able to enjoy its beautiful, aromatic fruits for a long time, you must comply with storage conditions. Where can you store pumpkin and how to do it correctly? Not all varieties of pumpkin are suitable for storage: only mid- and late-ripening varieties have high shelf life.
The conditions under which the crop is kept are also of great importance. Suitable conditions for storing pumpkin are:
- temperature - 5-15°C;
- humidity - about 75%;
- dark room;
- good ventilation.
Subject to basic conditions, late pumpkins can be stored for 8-10 months without loss of taste and presentation. To increase shelf life, the fruits are not washed or even wiped before storing, so as not to erase the natural protective layer.
When and how to store pumpkins
One of the main conditions for good keeping quality of a pumpkin is timely harvesting of the fruits. When is the best time to harvest pumpkins depends, of course, on the region and weather conditions during the season. However, there are signs by which you can determine that it is time to harvest the pumpkin:
- the bark became hard;
- a pattern characteristic of this variety appeared on it;
- the stalk has shrunk and become hard.
Pumpkin harvesting begins before frost begins, because... Fruits caught in frost are worse stored. During the harvesting process, the stalk is cut off, leaving a root no more than 10-20 cm long. Only ripe specimens without signs of disease or mechanical damage are suitable for long-term storage.
If a cold spell is predicted, and the pumpkin has not yet reached full ripening, it is harvested unripe, and then sent to a warm room (optimum temperature - 24-26°C) for ripening. Usually, two weeks are enough for the fruits to fully ripen.
How to store pumpkin in the cellar
The best place to store pumpkins is the cellar, because it is easiest there to create optimal conditions for long-term preservation of the crop.
It is better to store fruits on racks, having first laid a layer of dry straw or paper (for example, newspapers) on them.
Place the pumpkins in one layer, not close together, but leaving small gaps between them. In this case, it will be possible to avoid massive damage to the crop if suddenly some fruit begins to rot. In addition, separate placement eliminates the possibility of mechanical damage. Free space should also be left between the vegetables and the wall. The stem of all pumpkins should point upward.
You can also store pumpkins in the cellar in boxes, covering the fruits with dry moss. Check your crops regularly. If the litter becomes damp, replace it with dry litter. If moisture appears on the fruits, wipe them with a dry cloth. Immediately remove damaged pumpkins from the cellar, remove damaged areas, and process the rest as quickly as possible or immediately use them for food.
Do not store pumpkin together with apples, pears, plums and other fruits that emit ethylene, a gas that reduces the shelf life of other fruits.
How to store pumpkin in an apartment
Pumpkin can be stored in an apartment at room temperature for several months. The most suitable places for placing crops are:
- pantry: in the pantry the temperature is always several degrees lower than in the apartment. In addition, sunlight does not enter this room, which also extends the shelf life of the fruit. Place the vegetables on the shelves with the stalks facing up (you can first put them in cardboard boxes) so that they do not touch each other, and inspect the crop from time to time;
- the floor under the bed: it's cooler and darker than the rest of the room. However, it should be taken into account that if there is linoleum on the floor, then under the pumpkins you need to put plywood or fiberboard covered with newspapers. Otherwise, the storage rules are the same: the fruits are placed at a distance from each other and with the stalks up.
How to store pumpkin on a balcony or loggia
It should be noted right away that you can store pumpkins on a balcony or loggia only when they are glazed and insulated. Otherwise, these premises are suitable for storage only for a few months, until frost sets in.
It is better to store pumpkin on shelves covered with newspapers. If there are no racks, insulation is placed on the floor (for example, an old blanket), and vegetables are placed on it at some distance from each other. In autumn, they are covered with thick fabric to protect them from the sun. After the arrival of frost, the harvest (or each fruit separately) is wrapped in a blanket or old warm clothes.
How to store pumpkin in the refrigerator
You can also store pumpkin in the refrigerator. However, if the fruit is large, it will have to be cut into pieces, and this reduces the shelf life to 10 days.
You can also store some part of the harvest for a very long time (10-12 months) in the freezer. In this case, the pumpkin is washed, the bark is cut off, the pulp is cut into cubes and packaged in bags or containers. After defrosting, the vegetable is used to prepare porridges, soups and other dishes.
