March 30, 2021

Carrots In Fresh Moss Experiment Continues

Will this moss patch recover? I will be watching it over the coming weeks.


Like us, our carrots made it to spring! We recently used the last of those that were stored in fresh forest moss in a bin in our garage since the fall harvest. 

We have never used this method before, so it was an interesting experiment from the beginning.

No carrots were lost to rot, and every single one was as fresh as the day it was picked. 

But did the moss survive?



In the end, the moss retained some green, and was still moist. There was no odour, except a rich, clean smell of shaded forest floor. 

The properties of this soft, wet bedding not only preserved the carrots perfectly, but also encouraged some growth. 

Both roots and tops developed, so retrieving them from the bin over the winter was similar to pulling them from the garden in the fall.

Now, the experiment continues.

I took the moss back to the forest to release it into the wild. 

Be free. And thank you.

This method of food preservation will be considered a full success only if I see some recovery, and the moss recolonizes the bare patches I left in that deep, soft carpet of green under the trees. 

It definitely worked for us, and the carrots.





4 comments:

  1. Are you going to plant the carrot tops? You will just get greens, but they are nutritious.

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  2. Thanks for sharing your results. I was curious when you talked about trying this last Fall. Now to the wait to see if the moss will rejoin it's mossy kind.

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  3. Anonymous3/31/2021

    So interesting...waiting to see final results.
    Linda

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  4. We use sphagnum moss for keeping dew worms in a container in the fridge. invert container from time to time and replace the moss about every month. The spent moss just goes into the garden soil. I'm thinking your moss will not rejuvenate, however, it will be interesting to find out for sure. Never a dull moment at your place. How cold did it get in your shed? Our out buildings freeze so carrots have to go into the fridge. Yours look good!

    ReplyDelete

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