Yup, you can. Although for me way up north, it's iffy. I grew them once. The plants come to you slimy and yukky; that's apparently normal. I planted each slimy stick in a hill, top sticking out (directions should be included). The plants grew into low spreading ground vines and never bloomed that I could see. Finally, come fall (late September) I figured I better get it over with as frost was threatening and I was on borrowed time, garden-wise. I dug, and holy smoke! Giant beautiful sweet spuds, yams, what have you--they were lovely. One was at least a foot long and quite plump.

So in your zone, I would say that's a big affirmative--you can grow 'em. They are a tad different than anything else I've grown, I must say...

Have fun, and best wishes!

Constance.

Oh yipee! I was hoping to experience something like that. I purchased giant yams last fall. I think they were $2.50 a piece and more. One yam was more than a meal. I own an assisted living residence and I had alot of happy people eating those yams.

But the slimy planting thing is weird. I wonder why that is.

How about others-especially those that live a little south of Madison.

Hi from very SW corner of State. Yes, been growing them here for several years with excellent results. First started as an experiement with vine grown from sprout of a purchased potato. As mentioned, they are usually high yielding and not labor intensive at all. Do take a bit of room as vines spread out around 6 feet. And, they do bloom. In the morning glory family and have a white/lavendar blossom similar to a morning glory. In zone 4, we plant around last week of May or 1st week in June. We have been able to find healthy plants at Lowes garden center in Dubuque which come in 9 packs (not slimy). Usually not available until around last week of May. Enjoy the venture!

Thank you for responding to this post. I am glad to see you planted some not slimy spuds...are sweet potatoes in the spud family? I have the spot and I am glad to see I am not late. Hope I can find something to plant. Again, thanks for the words of encouragement.

Roasted root vegetables in the fall. Maybe I should think about rutabagas too!

I grew a bumper crop of rutabagas years ago. My MIL who has since passed away said she would never eat one again. She is German and thats about all they ate during WW2

Sweet potatoes are morning glory relatives, unrelated to potatoes or to true "yams", which are tropical. I have grown them several times in Winnebago County, with mixed results. One of the varieties is an Asian type grown for its edible _leaves_ (quite good, nutritious, and very prolific). I have also tried several others for their roots, that I bought through the mail.

In cold, wet years, you won't get much, especially further north. And some varieties will play hide-and-seek, with tubers that wander up to 2 feet from the plant, or 8" or more below the surface (that was the Asian variety). In my hard clay, that was an experience... plenty of tubers, and most rotted because I did not have time for the _excavation_ needed to find them!!

Sweet potatoes are generally planted (and sold) as "slips", which are the sprouts (sometimes rooted, sometimes not) that grow from the tubers. If you receive them unrooted, place them in a vase or glass of water for several days, and roots will form. It is best to plant them rooted; but you can also pinch off the lower leaves, and bury the lower half directly in the ground, if you keep them moist. Regardless of how you do it, get them in the ground quickly.

Because sweet potatoes need warmth, they will benefit from covering the soil around them with a solar mulch to hold heat, such as black perforated plastic, or black landscape cloth (which will also hold down the weeds).

You will have the best luck with "bush" varieties, and those bred for the North. If you are unable to find any locally, Sand Hill Preservation Center (in Iowa) has an extensive collection. They start shipping the end of May, however, so you would need to contact them soon.

Here is a link that might be useful: Sweet potatoes