Buried apples?

[Mike Serpa]

45 "The boys fared well on this raid, getting milk, honey, apples, etc., in abundance. The apples were buried in holes, as is frequently done with potatoes. And it was a laughable sight to see the boys fairly tumbling over each other, and almost standing on their heads, as they dived into the apple holes, trying to not get left in their attempts at getting a fair share of the apples."

Was burying apples and potatoes a common practice? Did it preserve the apples? How big were the holes?

History of the Twelfth West Virginia Volunteer Infantry : the part it took in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865 : Hewitt, William, 19th cent : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

226 p., [1] leaf of plates : 23 cm

archive.org

 

[Fairfield]

Burying various produce--especially root vegetables--still is done in Maine. In older times, they dug holes but now many people have "root cellars" (often not a cellar but an underground area for vegetable storage).

 

[UCVRelics]

Ive heard of burying taters but not apples.

 

[Sheltowee]

Ive heard of burying taters but not apples.

Same here. As for preserving apples- granny always dried 'em on the back porch?

 

[Fairfield]

From "Hard Times Cookbook" (a Bicentennial collection from a small coastal community): "Down home in the winter we depended on the crops we raised in the summer...the root cellars were dug usually about 6 feet in diameter and 3 feet deep. Then the vegetables were put over the hay and left in a sort of mound."

 

[Fairfield]

Ive heard of burying taters but not apples.

Nor I.

 

[Sheltowee]

Had to go to the source- collected accounts by Foxfire students at Rabun Gap Georgia .

Although drying was a common method of preservation, it was by no means the only one used. Burying fruits and vegetables was both an excellent means of preserving food and a testament to the ingenuity of the mountaineers. In order for the food to keep, the hole had to be well drained and insulated to prevent water accumulation and freezing. Sallie Beaty remembered well her family's potato hole. "Another way we kept our food was by putting it in a hole in the ground. We did our potatoes like this. [After] we dug up our potatoes in the fall, we would dig a hole [in the ground and put them in it]. We put straw or whatever we could find around them. Then we'd hill them up. [Next we] put dirt on top of them to keep 'em from freezing. Then we took an old piece of board or tin and put over the—we called it a hill—so it wouldn't get so wet. You could do turnips and cabbage the same way. Then, as you wanted a mess, you would go out there and get whatever you wanted at a time."

Ada Kelly also recalled her family's hole. "They'd dig a hole to put the apples in, put some hay, straw, or something in there, and just pour them in that hole. They they covered it over with leaves or straw and then heavy soil. Turnips, apples, and potatoes are all buried that way."

 

[JOHN42768]

I can't see it working in wet clay where the ground freezes fairly deep. I would guess a lot of conditions needed to be in your favor. Sandy dry soil, moderate temperatures and a critter free area.

 

[Fairfield]

I can't see it working in wet clay where the ground freezes fairly deep. I would guess a lot of conditions needed to be in your favor. Sandy dry soil, moderate temperatures and a critter free area.

But there's nothing moderate about temperatures in Maine. In really cold places, the hole is dug right in the snow. To avoid damage by wildlife, the root cellars are immediate to the dooryard.

 

[Fairfield]

I dug out an old reference book, Stocking Up: How to Preserve the Foods You Grow, Naturally (1973). There is an entire chapter on root cellars and underground storage--everything from simple holes to elaborate underground sheds that are temperature controlled. There is a specific section on underground storage of fruits--most especially apples. It's all rather fussy and particular as to ripeness of the fruit, length of storage, etc., and rather geared toward New England conditions. But, yes: according to this source, apples can be stored underground--and are suited for it.

 

[donna]

Years ago my Granny had root cellar. It had lots in it. I remember apples and potatoes and lot of things she had canned. I was very young so didn't give it all much thought.