Topic: planting out sweet potatoes

[debjay]

hi all  ;)
has anybody got any clues how and when to plant out sweet potatoes ?
we have had the slips potted up in plant pots in compost for about a month
they look strong and healthy, but now we dont know how to plant them in the allotment ???
any tips gratefully welcome ;D ;D ;D
debs :)

[Jeannine]

Hi, I am in the same position, thay are in 3 inch pots and doing really well.

This is our plan, but someone please jump in if they can tell me a better way.

Today we took the bags that potting soil comes in, rolled the top down neatly until about half the sixe, put drainage holes in. Jign put a couple of spades full of regular soil in to weight them down then filled with potting soil,They hold a lot of soil and are much bigger than any pots or growbags I have. We were going to transplant them today but ran out of time, so it will be tomorrow now.

They are going in my  big old greenhouse, it has just  a grapevine and a few melons in,the idea was that they could ramble out of the bags and wherever they liked on the earth floor.

Would that be OK????

XX Jeannine

[saddad]

I've just done the same Jeannine but into the border... a month earlier than last year... stand well back!
 ;D
I'll post a piccie after my quiz...

[saddad]

Here's one we prepared earlier...

 ;D
Having put ten in the same space today I think it may get a little crowded!
 :-[
This was the output...

[manicscousers]

we're growing ours up, like tomatoes..we tried it along the floor last year, pegging in where the plant grew roots..trouble is, we got nothing bigger than a very small potato...read an article, can't remember who it was, said grow up so, we'll try it  ;D

[Arumlily]

Where can one buy sweet potatoes? I don't think I've ever seen it sold anywhere. Do you grow it just like the normal potatoes.?

[antipodes]

I was going to ask the same thing. How is it sold? As tubers or as plants? Is there any place that does it by mail order? For next year now, of course... It is delicious but expensive to buy in the shop. Make crisps out of it! Very very thinly sliced and fried, yum yum.

[Tora]

You can buy slips from companies like T&M or produce slips from tubers yourself.

I bought a bag of sweet potatoes from Sainsbury's and did it myself. If you search sweet potato slips or something then you should be able to find topics with pictures. It's surprisingly easy to do and I got more than a dozen slips from a tuber. :)

I cut slips from tuber and stood them in a glass of water for several days and planted out straight into soil. I heard in Japan slips are sold without any root at all and they are planted as they are. They easily produce roots in the soil apparently. You just need to be careful that the soil doesn't get too dry before good roots develop.

[gwynleg]

Has anyone had good crops of sweet potatoes? I have about 8 slips on the go that I got myself (all off one potato - the other three I put in water did nothing). I only have a very full 5 pole allotment so am wondering whether to put these out or not if there isnt much return for a large area of planting? Hope someone will tell me different!