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| Hi, i am getting ready to harvest half of my sweet potatoes. I checked online regarding curing and this is what I found. ''After the roots are dug, they should be cured to heal the cuts and trigger development of the sugar-creating enzymes, the LSU AgCenter horticulturist explains. Cure by storing in a warm, humid room for five to 10 days. A temperature of 80 degrees to 85 degrees and a relative humidity of 80 percent to 90 percent are ideal.'' (Curing and Storing Sweet Potatoes, LSU AgCenter) From what I remember as a child we just stuck them in a paper bag and in a closet for a couple of weeks. Then let them sit in a vacant room for one to two months. So, I am curious What some of you do to cure your sweet potatoes Thanks |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by Slimy_Okra 2b (My Page) on Mon, Sep 15, 14 at 20:56
| Last year, I posted a question about using a defunct fridge for this purpose. I went ahead and did it and it worked very well since I had only a small amount. I layered my sweet potatoes in cardboard boxes covered with damp towels. At the bottom of the fridge, I placed a 96 watt heat mat with a couple of open bowls of water. With am ambient room temperature of 65 degrees, the fridge stayed at around 85-90 degrees. I checked on the SPs daily for 10 days but I never noticed any mold or other issues. |
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- Posted by shayneca25 8 (My Page) on Mon, Sep 15, 14 at 21:53
| I am thinking of sticking them in a clear tub next to a window that gets early morning to noon sun....with a damp rag in it. I leave them there for a couple of weeks Somewhat similar to what you are doing Slimy_Okra Shayne |
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| I don't really know what I'll do this year. I'm selling one house, buying another, and it's in the 60s outdoors. (sigh) I can't keep them in either house, I guess, so I'll have to take my chances.... Annie |
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| I usually wait for a spell of warm, sunny weather and after I dig them, put them in my car in the sun for several days. But this season has been so cold, and it's quite chilly and cloudy for the forseeable future, I'm not sure what to do this year. I don't want to wait too long because I think we're going to have an early frost. But I do know that the car technique seems to work quite well. |
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| this cool year i'm putting off harvesting til next week. i turn a bathroom into a mini hot house with a cool mist humidifier and a oil filled electric heater ( looks like a small radiator) for about a week. of course they don't run overnight or even constantly. s.p.'s are in cardboard boxes in a single layer. then stored in the basement. it works, mine last until late spring,i try to save 1 or 2 for slips. we eat the thin ones first since they tend to dry up or get woody. btw they are all grown in 35 gallon drums cut in half, with lots of 3/8th"s inch holes, = no voles ! easy to dump them out, too |
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- Posted by chrisb_sc_z7 near Clemson, SC (My Page) on Tue, Sep 16, 14 at 8:07
| Two years ago, I harvested enough to cover the bed of a 7x12 flatbed trailer almost twice. I left them outside under a shed in the shade a few days on the trailer. Dry, NOT in the sun. I left the dirt on them that stuck to them, mostly just dust. I sell them at work cheap, $5 per 5 gallon bucket or something like 25 cents per pound. Just seed money. I sold about 3/4 of them. I ended up with 10 buckets myself a week later. I put them in the sun room, protected from direct sun exposure, where it's sort of warm in the summer and cool in the winter. I had good tubers up into April. Had to pick some sprouts in March and throw some away throughout the period, but I didn't do anything special to them. Last year, lots of rain and no taters. I was so upset. I have not dug yet this year. 2 more weeks before I'll even think about it unless frost is forecast. Not likely... |
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- Posted by matthias_lang (My Page) on Tue, Sep 16, 14 at 12:50
| Normally it is still hot when I dig them in September or October. I just put them in old plastic dairy crates in the sun for about ten days. Our relative humidity also is pretty high. That works very well for me, easily allowing us to eat from the same batch fully two years later. Last year my sweet potatoes were late to finish and we had cool weather. At first I set them out single layer on a dark sheet on the lawn with heavy clear plastic over them to trap the sun's heat. I turned them 2-3 times during the day to even out the warmth. I also kept a thermometer under the plastic to monitor temps. It never did get as warm as I would have preferred. I brought them in every evening. Later, I resorted to putting them in the car by day. However, by then it just was not getting very warm even in the car. The potatoes have kept until now, almost a year since put away in the dark basement. But no way will any from this batch make it all the way to next year. Buds are breaking....I did eat first the smaller ones and any that began to show signs of losing internal moisture. So even my best sweet potatoes from last year don't have the usual storage life. (I did not grow any to cure this year.) |
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| I've never tried putting them in a car. Doesn't a car get too hot? I didn't grow any this year but I bought some from a local farmer yesterday and they are fresh dug. I usually just stick them in my building in old milk crates to cure. But we are having some cooler weather starting today, highs in the mid 70's and lows in the low 60's and high 50's. When I got in my truck after work yesterday it was at least 110 in there even though it was cloudy and 80 outside. If the sun is shining I'm afraid that they will bake! |
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