🧊 Harvested Produce Storage Life Reference Chart
A quick reference for how long common harvested vegetables typically keep under different storage conditions.
Ten crops, sorted by where they want to sit
The chart lists a storage life for each crop under the conditions that suit it. Grouped by environment, the pattern behind the ten rows is easier to use:
| Conditions | Crops and life |
|---|---|
| Cool and dry, 50-55°F | Garlic 6-8 months, onions 4-8, winter squash 2-6 by variety |
| Root cellar, cool and damp | Potatoes 4-6 months, carrots 4-6 in damp sand, cabbage 3-4, apples 2-6 |
| Fridge | Carrots 3-4 weeks, cabbage 1-2 months, leafy greens 5-10 days, green beans 5-7 |
| Freezer, blanched | Leafy greens 10-12 months, green beans 8-12, tomatoes 8-12 whole or as sauce |
Ripe tomatoes are the outlier: the chart gives them a week on the counter and no fridge line at all, because cold flattens their flavour and texture.
What the numbers assume
- Sound, cured produce. Onions, garlic and squash need curing before they go into store, and one bruised or diseased item will take the crate around it down with it well inside these times.
- Humidity as much as temperature. Carrots reach four months only in damp sand; the same carrots loose on a dry shelf go rubbery in weeks.
- Keep apples apart. They give off ethylene, which pushes potatoes and carrots stored next to them to sprout and soften early.
Frequently asked questions
How long do potatoes keep in a root cellar?
Four to six months in cool, dark, damp storage. That is the longest keeping of any of the fresh options for potatoes, and far beyond what they manage on a kitchen shelf.
Why should you not store potatoes in the fridge?
Below about 40°F their starch converts to sugar. They stay edible but turn sweet and go dark when fried or roasted at high heat.
How long do green beans last in the freezer?
Eight to twelve months once blanched, against five to seven days fresh in the fridge. Blanching first is what buys the difference.