Last year was my first year to grow them but i will share what i found.

I started my own slips from a potaro i bought at the store. I used the toothpick and quart jar method. I put 3 toothpicks around the potato and placed it in a jar of water with about a 1.3 of the potato out of the water and let it grow.

I then broke off the vines(slips) and planted them in the garden when it was really warm. and kept them well watered so they would develope roots. Once rooted they can stand some drought conditions.

I was told by a lady that grew them when she was young to harvest them right before the first frost. Once a frost hits the vines it will travel into the potato and have an off flavor and less storage time.

I did have some nice size potatoes with my first crop.

Also theey will spread out pretty far. probably from where they emerged it was a good 6 feet coverage or maybe more.

Ada,

Sweet potatoes grow best on sandy loam but they will grow in any soil as long as it is well-drained. The quality of the sweet potato crop will vary depending on what kind of soil they grow in. Sweet potatos like slightly acidic soil with a pH of 5.5 to 6.5, but I get good crops in improved sandy soil with a pH around 7 to 7.4. The nice thing about sweet potatoes is that they do better in poorer soil than in richer soil--they actually don't do that well on rich soil with high levels of organic content in the soil, so put them in an area where you have poorer soil. I did have to improve my small band of sandy soil for them because it was pure sand. And, if all you have is rich, heavy soil, they'll be OK as long as it drains very well. If it doesn't drain well, put them in a raised bed.

Sweet potatoes simply must have warmth so you cannot plant them until all danger of frost has passed. The ideal time to plant them is when your soil temperature reaches 60 degrees about 2" below the soil surface and stays there for at least 3 consecutive days.

You can grow your own slips or you can purchase them from Sandhill Preservation Center or sometimes you see them in nurseries and local feed/seed stores. Many varieties are available and every variety I've ever tried has produced a good crop here. If you purchase them from a region different than our own, be sure they will ship them at the right time. You get a larger crop from an earlier planting than a later one--so planting as soon as the soil is in the 60s will give you a maximum yield. The varieties I usually see in stores here in southern OK and in northern Texas are "Centennial", "Jewel" and "Beauregard".

Although sweet potatoes are somewhat drought-tolerant once established, they will grow best if you keep their soil uniformly moist but not sopping wet. Because they make beautiful, lush foliage, you may see some wilting during the hottest part of the day. If they do not recover from that wilting around sunset, they need to be watered. I get around the wilting issue by planting mine on the edge of the garden where they get morning sun until about noon or 1 p.m., then dappled shade from a pecan tree during the hottest part of the day, and then late, late afternoon sun from about 4 or 5 p.m. to sunset. Under those conditions, they seldom wilt here and the plants still get enough sun to set a good crop.

Sweet potatoes take a long, long time to reach harvestable size With most varieties, you ought to have at least some potatoes at "eating size" about 110-120 days after planting. You can harvest some of those and eat them then if you want (in the same way you take "new potatoes" from an Irish potato plant but leave the rest to mature). Sweet potatoes don't really "ripen"--they just get to a harvestable size so you can leave them in the ground and let them get bigger and bigger as long as you harvest them before your temperatures begin to drop below 50 degrees in the fall.

Harvesting mainly means digging them and letting them dry for a few hours before putting them in a location that will allow them to cure for a couple of weeks before they go into long-term storage.

I've never had pest problems with sweet potatoes, but some people have issues with the sweet potato weevil or with nematodes.

Dawn

I just go to the store around the middle of May and pick out a pretty sweet potato that I want to try and reproduce. Split it down the middle lengthwise and take the two halves out to your flower bed, plant them face down and mound about 3/4 inch of dirt around each. These will make about all the slips you want.
I like to harvest them along about the last of Oct., sooo counting backwards (120) days, I try to plant them the first of July. I know its hot then, but do your best for a cloudy day, or evening, and water them in. They must be kept moist till the roots start to develop. I personally have never thought they were drought tolerant.
I got ahead of myself. I pull up a good 1 1/2 feet of dirt in a mounded row and plant in the top of that. Usually I space them 6 or 8 inches apart.
Best of Luck - Bill

I start my sweet potatoes sprouting in February. Though, if we didn't heat with wood, I'd probably start until the middle of March. (We often stop burning wood in March, and then the house is a little cool. Sweet potatoes like HEAT to start sprouting.)

There are a number of ways to sprout them. I personally prefer to sink an entire sweet potato about 3/4 of it's depth in a flat of potting mix. I keep this moist, warm and in light, and it sprouts within a couple weeks.

As the slips (little stalks/stems) reach about 5 or 6" I often break them off and transplant them into potting mix on their own. This causes the sweet potato to sprout more vigorously.

DON'T plant your slips outside until nights are consistently warm. You won't gain anything by doing so. In fact, I suspect you'll have a smaller harvest than if you waited until later, even weeks and weeks later, if necessary. Sweet potatoes want HEAT to really grow. Glenn Drowns of Sandhill Preservation Center is probably one of the most dedicated sweet potato growers I know. He has commented to me that on occasion he has received a sweet potato sample (slips) just before a late spring cold spell hit. He got a couple slips out and had to wait a MONTH before he could plant the rest. These later slips went in quite late by conventional standards. Yet they produced better than the ones which had endured the rain and cold.

Last year I put in a row of sweet potatoes (three varieties), really late, on July 18. They produced usable roots by fall. One variety, called Brinkly White actually produced REALLY WELL! But generally I want to get my sweet potatoes in by early June. Last year most were in before June.

I hill up earth, in rows, about a foot high, where I'm going to plant sweet potatoes. I know not everyone does this. But my theory is that this causes the young plants to REACH for moisture when the first heat hits. These first roots are the ones which will develop into the best sweet potatoes.

It is not necessary that a sweet potato slip have roots when planted. One can actually cut up a section of vine and plant the segments, on the top of the hill, and they will root and grow, even if they don't have roots to begin with. I use a tool to make a hole and push the slip in, on an angle, until only the top couple of leaves are above ground. Slips root within about 3-4 days.

I also prefer to flip my sweet potato vines, in order to keep them from rooting and forming small sweet potatoes away from the row. But again, this is my custom. I know some who don't do this and they swear that they get great harvests.

I agree with Dawn about moisture. They are very drought resistant. But it seems that root growth very nearly grinds to a halt during the hottest part of the summer, unless they receive some water.

Sweet potatoes are one of our very favorite crops. They are a staple in our diet. Home grown, and properly handled, they are usually superior to store bought. Plus, these days, one can save a lot of money by growing them.

Be sure to harvest before a really cold spell in the fall. The roots are best if they can be set out in a very warm location, for a couple days before being stored for the winter. Do not store them in a cold environment. They do best above 40 F. We've stored them in the house, at room temperature and only noticed that they start sprouting around February.

George

Here's a picture of some of our sweet potatoes sprouting in the tray.

Let's be remembering Dawn's men, as I bet they are busy with fires right now. Pray for rain!

George

Busy, Dawn, Bill and George,

Thanks for all of the information and the starting tips; I know where to head now! And, George, what a great photo! It's helpful to put a visual in back of the starting information. And, they are beautiful. :-)

Ada

Hi all, I am new to this forum. I am usually on the Indiana forum. We are currently discussing what is going on this spring. I had asked about sweet potatoes and a couple of us are going to try them this year! I found your site and you all have great information on SP. Thanks! I will be visiting your forum again. Great picture! I am going to buy the plants/as I have not started any sprouts -Is one way better than the other or does it make a difference?

Thank You,
Nelda1234

Nelda,

Hi. Welcome to the Oklahoma Forum. We love having guests!

I don't think it makes a difference. Sweet potato slips grow just fine either way.

If you can't find sweet potato slips easily in your part of the country, there are lots of places where you can order them online.

If you want to grow an heirloom type of sweet potato, Sandhill Preservation Center has a great selection. I know George mentioned Sandhill and Glenn Drowns above. I'll link them below. Like George, I've found sweet potatoes produce much better if planted once the soil temps and air temps are really warm and the cold nights are history.

Good luck growing sweet potatoes.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: Sandhill's Heirloom Sweet Potato Catalog

Thank you okiedawn for the welcome and for the link - I think I'm in love! LOL!! Now I have another question about SP, as you know I have never grown them before - how many SP come on a plant? Do they grow like a potato? As in several to each plant? I am wondering just how many plants/slips to purchase - and what are some of yours or anybody else's favorite.

On the Indiana forum we are all chicken crazy!! :) We all have chickens and are always talking about our "girls".

I have 95 "girls" and 9 more coming in May! They are raised organically (except licence), I cook for them and bake them organic bread and grow organic wheat grass in the house for them! We on our forum Love our Chickens!! :)

The Georgia Jet Sweet Potato is one of the most popular varieties. Maturing in only 90 days, this Sweet Potato has a deep orange pulp, a moist flesh and fantastic flavor. It is not overly large, so lends itself well to individual servings.

Most Sweet Potatoes produced commercially in the U.S. are grown in the southern states, but this particular variety is more cold-tolerant than most. This gem will grow well in both the northern and southern states. It is recommended that when planting in the northern states, that you plant on a raised ridge of soil and that you cover the ridge with black plastic a week or so prior to planting. This warms the soil in preparation for the young plants and enables you to plant earlier, resulting in less shock and more abundantly fruitful plants.

You may also find that you enjoy the ornamental aspect of Sweet Potato plants. The Georgia Jet has a heart-shaped leaf tinged with a deep burgundy color. A close relative of the Morning Glory, they grow as trailing vines and can quickly become an attractive ground cover. You can just as easily grow them in your kitchen window in a mason jar, though you will not produce Sweet Potatoes in this manner. The Sweet Potato itself is a root rich in Vitamin A with a subtly sweet flavor that is enjoyed as a side dish with just a dollop of butter, as the main ingredient in a tasty casserole or baked into a pie for a scrumptious and wholesome desert.

I was looking through some old posts on sweet potatoes,
and it reminded me to thank macmex for his advice back on 3-7-09 on how he started his slips, I tried your method George and it worked out great, I had more slips them I knew what to do with.
Again thanks.
James.

Hi. I'm new to Oklahoma Gardening and was trying to find info about sweet potatoes. All of your info has been absolutely great. We planted swt potatoes this year and wasn't sure when to harvest them. Figured that out..now I have another question. When growing slips, do you actually just pull the sprouts off the sweet potato or do you just plant the whole potato like you do with regular potatoes? Thank you so much!!

Mspriggs,

You pull the sprouts off the potato and plant the sprout, which is referred to as a slip. Some people plant the slips directly into the ground at that point, but I like to stick them in a flat of potting soil and let them develop some roots first. Some people stick the slips in water and root them that way, but when you do that, the continuous moisture can lead to disease if they're left in the water more than a very few days. By rooting them first, the slips are less likely to struggle if it is hot when they're set out. (They adore heat, but not before they have at least some roots).

Dawn

Okiehobo, you're welcome. I almost missed your post. Now we're looking forward to the harvest. Hopefully, this year we can keep the rodents under control so we get more of it ourselves!

George

Note to George!

The sweet potatos that you gave me at the Spring swap are growing very well! I lost the white one to some sort of varmit. Can't wait to see the prizes soon.

Laura

I am a total newbie to the Garden Forum but a love to garden. I am in zone 8 in Texas, and I appreciate the info from my friends in OKlahoma concerning Sweet Potato varieties. I am ordering slips from Sandhill this year and OMG do they have a selection of varieties. I do not know what to get. After long long long investigation, my choices are: 8633, Purple, Old Henry, Red Wine Velvet, Sharp. Has any one had experience, both growing and eating, any of these varieties. Would appreciate response ASAP as I need to mail this today to get in line for slips. Happiness is a sweet potato in each hand and one in the oven......

Charlon, sorry I didn't see your posting sooner. Maybe Gary and Dawn will chime in with input. I don't really know much about the varieties you mention other than Red Wine Velvet, which is good (moist & sweet).

Here's a link to the Internet site of "The Current," a Green Country publication. Right on this page is a link to an article, on sweet potatoes, which I did for them. The article also contains links to both Duck Creek Farms (Gary's outfit) and Sandhill Preservation Center, which you already know.

Bt the way, I suspect this link will only be good until April. After that I could email it to whoever might be interested.

I have mine started, indoors, now.

George

http://www.currentland.com/

I'm excited to grow the sweet potatoes George sent me.

However, the only soil I have is rich clay. Then, the only type of soil amendment I have is compost, leaves or decayed rabbit poo. (pH will be just above 7)

Do I need buy some sand? Ya'll know I don't usually throw money at gardening, but the kids DO need their sand pit filled and it's only a few bucks for a couple truck loads. Heaven knows my onions, garlic and potatoes could probably use some.

If you mix sand into your soil, use a coarse type, like builders sand. I added about one to two inches of sand to most of our beds, but only after mixing in a lot of compost, first. I also mixed it all by hand, to a depth of around ten to twelve inches. Most of our beds are now 'light and fluffy' and starting to become good, rich, soil.

With the wrong 'recipe', when you mix sand into clay, you can get bricks, instead of soil, so be careful. Mix a little sand at a time with plenty of compost is my own recommendation.

Bon,

I don't have sand in my garden. It's clay with rocks. Adding sand certainly won't hurt. But I don't think you have to. Regular compost will loosen things up.

Last summer I actually grew my sweets in an area that had never been cultivated before. They did very well. Part of the row where I planted Grand Asia didn't even get hilled. I simply turned the sod under and covered with black plastic, laying T tape drip irrigation underneath. Grand Asia not only produced prodigiously, it even produced some usable roots ON TOP of the plastic, growing in decayed mulch, which had been placed over the plastic.

Here's a link which might be useful. The document isn't perfect. But it has some good info. Also, it is well worth the visit to Sandhill Preservation's sweet potato web site. They have the very best info around on growing sweet potatoes.

George

Okay, George. Sounds like they'll be happy here. I can get quite a bit of fluff from the rabbit poo, as you well know, that tends to settle after about 3 weeks.

I think I'll try some sand in a trial area. I'd really like to use some sand in future onion beds to help keep them dry. I'd never attempt this in the early days, but I think I'm familiar with the consistency that's needed. I'll apply some builder's sand along with compost and poo and watch the change over time.

I really need more "fluff" and the rabbits aren't pooing fast enough for my expansions.

Charlon, I'm not familiar with any of the varieties that you mentioned. However, I don't know that I've ever grown any variety (I've grown about 30 different ones) here that didn't do well here and/or that didn't have great flavor and texture.

Bon, I've grown sweet potatoes in well-amended clay, poorly-amended clay (ya know---so much clay, so little time to amend it all), well-amended sand (added compost and pine bark fines to it the year before I grew sweet potatoes there) and sand that wasn't amended at all. They did great in all of them. The only year I had trouble with sweet potatoes in clay was a very rainy year where the plants rotted off at the soil line before they ever formed tubers. In that year, which I believe was 2007, we had about 21" of rain just in May and June.

I never add only sand to clay---I always add both pine bark fines and compost to the clay at the same time I add sand. Sand + Clay pretty much = adobe if you don't add some form of organic matter at the same time.

After 15 years, our red clay in the heavily amended areas is lovely brown sandy loamy clayey soil. I think it will be another 15 years before I am thoroughly pleased with the soil's quality though. In this climate it is almost one step forward, two steps back, because the heat just devours the organic matter in the soil.

Dawn

I just returned from digging kitchen scraps into my soil. While there I was appreciating its form. I don't know why my mind is always thinking of perfection. It looks good. Really.

There are also some varieties which were developed for hard soil. Oklahoma Red is one of them. I got that one from Sandhill Preservation, about 8 years ago. At first I was kind of disappointed with it because it put out such long SKINNY roots. But after a year or two I found that only the roots which ran on a horazontal plain were so skinny. Most went down, into that hard soil, and were very nicely formed.

I do not understand why some varieties, especially a sweet potato, which is essentially a clone, take a couple of years to adapt to my conditions. Maybe I'm the one doing the adapting¿? Yet I am unaware of anything I did differently.

Oklahoma Red became a special "friend," and then, a couple of years ago, I lost it in a fungus gnat infestation, while trying to start my slips. Gary Schaum graciously helped me to replace a good number of my varieties, even offering to replace Oklahoma Red. But I got covered up with all the work and had to decline. This year, I included it in an order to Sandhill Preservation. I plan to get it back!

George

George
That's nice. Those pulled double duty. I bet that soil really is much better.

I am a very novice gardener and forum user. I really tried searching the forum, but I am not sure I did a very good job of it.
l planted "Centennial" sweet potato slips back in mid March. I now find some of the leaves close to the roots turning yellow and brown.
I am posting a picture in hopes I can get help identifying the problem?

Thanks in advance,
Harold

Harold, is that a complete branch which is turning, and not just a smattering of leaves? If it's a complete branch, I wonder if a pest hasn't attacked it where it connects to the roots? I've had voles eat my sweet potatoes from underground. I'd consider digging into the hill with my hand and seeing what I can find there.

George

Harold, my sweet potatoes look like that often at harvest time. I most often harvest mine around the first of Oct., but you can plant much earlier than I can.

Have you tried to dig out a plant to see if they are of good size. I expect you could leave them in the ground as long as you want but the size and quality may not be to your liking.

Being that this is a sweet potato thread, I will show a problem I have had and did not know for sure what was happening. Because I don't have a lot of room I have planted two different kinds of sweet potatoes close together and then be disappointed because one type would do so poorly.

This year I planted a sweet potato that I use as an ornamental in with my Beauregard sweet potatoes. I did not plant near as many of the ornamental, but I needed some to save to make slips for next year. The ornamental have the hand shaped leaves, the Beauregard have the heart shaped leaves. As you can see the ornamental are taking over the bed. I am going to have to pull out the ornamental to have a harvest of Beauregard. I have had this to happen in the past, but the leaves looked so much alike that I did not see what was happening.

Larry

Gee, I thought I would get an email notice that a response was made, but I guess that was an incorrect assumption. Thanks to both of you for the responses. I will do a bit of digging to see what I find.

Thank you,
Harold