Botanical Garden Root Cellar, Hatch Entrance Open, St. John's

• Main Authors: Pomeroy, Julie, Braye, Crystal
• Format: Still Image
• Language: English
• Published: 2011
• Subjects: Migration/settlement; Objects; Architecture; building and construction; Buildings; Outbuildings; Root cellars; Newfoundland
• Online Access: http://collections.mun.ca/cdm/ref/collection/ich_nature/id/627

The cellar at the botanical Gardens in St. John’s is located in the original carriage house on the property. This is across the street from the main building located in the parking lot where there are green houses. The Carriage house and the adjacent barn have been dedicated as heritage buildings. The carriage house cellar was built in approximately 1917 by Joseph Squires. It was originally used to store vegetables and milk products. Today it is used for forcing bulbs over the winter. It has been used for this purpose for over 20 years. The temperature stays at a steady 2-3 degrees Celsius. There is a hatch entrance in the floor of the carriage house with a ladder leading down into the 2.7m square stone structure. The original pounds were removed and new suspended shelving has been built to accommodate the trays of plants. The land and all of the structures were sold to Memorial University in the 1970’s by Ina Squires. The cellar has a French drainage system that is made out of flat rocks underneath the cellar which drains out into a nearby field.