Author Topic: Sweet Potatoes (Read 6616 times)

westsussexlottie · « **Reply #20 on:** June 17, 2005, 08:52:45 »

Yes - if you are growing them in the greenhouse border or open ground then grow in rows - support as for runner beans as they twine around canes.

Anne Robertson · « **Reply #21 on:** June 18, 2005, 11:58:25 »

Spent the morning planting my SP slips under black plastic. Some of them look as if they need a lot of TLC but I've got my fingers crossed that when I go down tomorrow they will look a bit perkier :)

caz 406 · « **Reply #22 on:** June 18, 2005, 17:35:02 »

Ani, ooooh glad they have arrived at last! :D Be great to compare notes. I've just (half an hour ago) come back from a week in Spain 8) and apparently my SP's are looking bloomin dodgy according to my dad. :( He reckons they are still looking really sick, spindly and generally pretty hopeless! Can't wait to get down there to have a look for myself. It's been pretty warm and Dad has been watering them regularly for me so don't know what else I could do with them - any ideas? ??? Caz

flowerlady · « **Reply #23 on:** June 18, 2005, 23:50:37 »

I grew up in Kenya, I remember that the local 'shambas' were always covered with sweet potatoes.

I know they like to be sun baked, they were never supported to grow vertically, just romped off across the plot. They put out a prodigeous amounts of foliage too.

I cannot remember if they were grown in rows, but it is easier I suppose when it comes to digging the harvest. ;D

It's far too late for me to grom them this year, sadly my newly accquired plot is STILL 3' under grass despite loads of promisses of a man with a strimmer. :'(

WHICH variety do you all grow? Pink or red?

westsussexlottie · « **Reply #24 on:** June 22, 2005, 10:24:54 »

I grow an orange looking type - from the supermarket.
Plants now a metre tall.

Aussie Chick · « **Reply #25 on:** June 22, 2005, 10:55:06 »

I still haven't been able to buy any. Can i use the organic ones from the supermarket? and am I too late to plant?

westsussexlottie · « **Reply #26 on:** June 22, 2005, 11:02:19 »

Too late for this year now unless you can get some slips - they need a long growing season and should be in the ground by now.
My advice to you is this:
Buy about three sweet potatoes in late January and a big bag of vermiculite. Bury the potatoes in the vermiculite and keep it very moist in a warm light place (we have a boiler room with a window which is south facing and this is ideal).
Roots will appear. These will be followed by shoots (slips).
When these are 20-30cm high pick them off (as you pick them off - more will grow so you get a series to plant)where they meet the sweet potato and plant them into compost (I use a dustbin) and keep them hot and well watered (greenhouse is ideal). You can also grow them in greenhouse borders and depending where you are in the UK - even outside in a compost filled trench. They grow very tall and are twiny like runner beans. You will NOT get a huge crop and they will not be big like supermarket ones but they will be worthwhile.

Anne Robertson · « **Reply #27 on:** June 22, 2005, 12:25:12 »

Checked mine today having planted them under black plastic at the week end. 8 of them seem to like their new home and I'm hoping the other two will settle in soon.
I've decided to coil the foliage round and round as I don't have enough canes for them to grow up.
Will take pics and now that my son has just sat his last GCSE he may have time to help me post them.

Anne Robertson · « **Reply #28 on:** June 22, 2005, 12:26:38 »

Can't believe that the previous post worked as I've been trying to post on this topic for 4 days and it's come up with forbidden each time.

westsussexlottie · « **Reply #29 on:** June 22, 2005, 13:07:19 »

I am sure they will be fine. They do grow roots quite fast once in compost and kept warm. They will love this weather.

caz 406 · « **Reply #30 on:** June 30, 2005, 21:06:34 »

Ani - glad to hear yours are surviving. Mine are too. Some of them were chewed to bits but seem to have revived somehow - they must be pretty resilient. Will try to get photos on here in next few days.

WSL - I didn't realise they grew that tall. Mine are between about five and eight inches tall. A couple of them are quite bushy but some are still a bit puny with only a few leaves.

Caz :)

westsussexlottie · « **Reply #31 on:** June 30, 2005, 21:32:26 »

Keep them well watered and feed them with a general purpose feed (seaweed based is good). Give them something to twine up and when they have a hot spell for a few days they will grow like crazy.

Jesse · « **Reply #32 on:** July 01, 2005, 13:31:43 »

mine arrived a couple of weeks ago, I've kept them well watered and most of them look okay but still very small. I wonder if there's going to be enough time for them to grow and produce anything worthwhile. I would have preferred to receive them earlier and plant out with cloche protection. Next year I'll be growing my own slips so that I can get an earlier start.

Anne Robertson · « **Reply #33 on:** July 02, 2005, 10:37:28 »

All mine have taken, even the two that I thought wouldn't. They haven't been nibble by anything thank goodness.
They are still pretty slow growing at the moment but I'm hoping for great things over the next couple of weeks.
Miserable teen son won't help me post pics :'(

Jesse · « **Reply #34 on:** July 02, 2005, 17:38:44 »

Ani, I'd love to see your photos, mine look so small and piddly. If you email them to me I'll post them for you if you like. Let me know if you want me to and I'll pm you my email address. :)

Anne Robertson · « **Reply #35 on:** July 03, 2005, 19:20:16 »

Thanks for offer, I'll get onto it tomorrow as I've got a day off :)

Anne Robertson · « **Reply #36 on:** July 07, 2005, 14:12:15 »

Finally bribed my son with a litre of Mascpone ice cream to help me with pics :) Trouble is he was so fast that he'd finished while I blinked so don't know if I'll be able to do it on my own.
Could be expensive this picture posting ;D

These were taken 6 days ago.

westsussexlottie · « **Reply #37 on:** July 07, 2005, 16:11:11 »

Thats interesting. Mine are much taller - but the leaves are much smaller. Could easily be because mine are from a supermarket sweet potato - not purchased slips.

Jesse · « **Reply #38 on:** July 07, 2005, 20:21:53 »

Ani your plants are bigger than mine. Did they arrive around that size or have they grown since you planted them. Mine arrived quite small and haven't done much growing at all, but it's only been a couple of weeks.

caz 406 · « **Reply #39 on:** July 07, 2005, 21:01:15 »

Ani - yours look a bit taller than mine but otherwise much the same. Mine have generated quite a lot of ineterest from other plot holders and one kind person left a photocopy of some info on growing them in Dad's greenhouse for me. It says in the UK you should twirl them around (as you had suggested) rather than letting them twine upwards because that would help with the yield apparently???
I'm also going to do my own slips - well that is if I get any SPs from these ::), and start them earlier next year. This info sheet said they could be harvested from about 12 weeks. Mine have been in for about four weeks and unless they grow like mad I can't see me harvesting much in another 8 weeks time! :)
I want to put photos on too but the other half is more interested in building his racing kit car than helping me out!

Caz :)

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Author Topic: Sweet Potatoes (Read 6616 times)