How to Store Your Share 2

Every season we get lots of questions about how to store certain items, and hear from shareholders that items are going bad quickly because they weren't stored properly. Never fear! We are here to intervene early on in the season.

Four Tips for All Items:

1. Do not store anything in direct sunlight or in overly hot places. It will ripen and start to rot very quickly.

2. Do not store items loose on fridge shelves. Put everything in plastic bags, or it will wilt very quickly.

3. Keep different types of items separate from each other (fruits and vegetables, onions and potatoes). The hormones they release will have different effects on the others, causing accelerated ripening, fiber decay, etc.

4. TAKE THE TIME TO STORE YOUR ITEMS! I certainly have been known to give in to the urge to shove my whole tote bag in the fridge after carrying home my share, but believe me, investing the time in doing it right early on will keep a lot of items from going to waste.

Storing This Week's Share:

Greens (kale, bok choy): Take off any rubber bands, and store me in a plastic bag in the fridge. Keep the bag closed loosely, and don't put other items on top of me. You want to minimize the air flow, but it's fine if the bag is not completely sealed.

Apples: Keep these in the fridge in different airspace than all your other produce, either in a bag or a separate drawer. The ethylene apples release will cause everything to continue to ripen far too long.

Watermelon: Keep me in the fridge, away from the apples!

Cherry Tomatoes: Do not put me in the fridge, but do keep me on the counter in a cool place, and do not put me in direct sunlight. Eat me quickly! I'm not meant to last.

Onions: Keep me in a cool, dark place in your pantry or on your counter, and do not put me in direct sunlight. Ideally you will put me in a brown paper bag! But keep me away from the potatoes and winter squash.

Potatoes and Winter Squash: Keep me in a cool, dark place in your pantry or on your counter, and do not put me in direct sunlight. Ideally you will put me in a brown paper bag! But keep me away from the onions.

Hope this helps! For more tips, check out our other storage post here.

ADDITION 10/6/14: Even Buzzfeed has things to say about why veggie storage is so important. Although we disagree with some of their methods, it's a fun infographic.