Yes i know its far too early but last year i had some limited success with these and would like to try again, i feel if i had got them started earlier and given them a longer season it would have been more successful. what is the earliest i can start growing slips indoors bearing in mind i can only grow them in cloches or a poly cold frame outside.
im gonna write the earliest date in my diary to remind me
thanks again
debs ;D
I'm just about to start mine now, same as last year and I got a great crop. I grow mine outside and it seems to me too that it's the length of the growing season that matters. I read somewhere they need 5 frost-free months so I aim to get them in the ground as early as possible.
do you grow slips from them?
Do you mean do I grow my own slips? If so, yes. I get a supermarket potato, stick cocktail sticks in half way down and suspend it (root end down) in water. When the shoots appear I pull them off carefully with a little bit of skin attached and put them in water. Once they've got a good root system I pot them up. That's the way that works for me. No doubt Eristic will be along to say I'm wrong. ;)
I always buy mine, but it isn't sure to be frost free here until June. I grow under glass. We still haven't finished this years crop... tend to get 1-2 kg per slip..
;D
(http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e190/Plot52/DSCN2281.jpg)
(http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e190/Plot52/DSCN2048.jpg)
;D
wow saddad im impressed.
thats exactly how i grew my slips last year so i will get one going got nothing to lose, just want to extend the growing season, can keep them indoors as long as possible too, thanks guys
QuoteNo doubt Eristic will be along to say I'm wrong.
Not wrong but brutal which I suppose is what we should expect from the Greek Goddess of all things nasty to man. Mutilating the tuber opens it up to infection and damaged sweet potatoes are highly susceptible to rot.
If the tuber is kept in a warm humid atmosphere it will sprout whether you want it to or not. Leave one in the cupboard for a few weeks and it will shoot. I used to start mine in Feb by sitting them in a container with some water in and placed on the server but this year my home server is offline.
I tried this a couple of years ago and I couldn't get them to sprout. Don't think it was an organic one so I guess they are sprayed to stop them sprouting. I may try again this year. When do you start them off? On gardener's world they grew them on a wigwam exposed. Is this worth a try?
mine sprouted really well dont remember if it was an organic one or not? think i remember someone suggesting scrubbing them first although i didnt do that
Quote from: Eristic on January 04, 2009, 17:41:59
QuoteNo doubt Eristic will be along to say I'm wrong.
Not wrong but brutal which I suppose is what we should expect from the Greek Goddess of all things nasty to man. Mutilating the tuber opens it up to infection and damaged sweet potatoes are highly susceptible to rot.
If the tuber is kept in a warm humid atmosphere it will sprout whether you want it to or not. Leave one in the cupboard for a few weeks and it will shoot. I used to start mine in Feb by sitting them in a container with some water in and placed on the server but this year my home server is offline.
Been continuing your charm lessons with tgg I see.
BTW I am singular not plural, spelt with a C, not a K and Roman not Greek. But an easy mistake to make if you rely on Wikipedia for your 'facts'.
Bye bye!
come on folks i only asked a question please dont fight about it. :(
So, do the shoots look the same as they do on an ordinary potato?
Sinbad
my cuttings from the vines last year are still going, looking a bit yellow but with a bit of growth.hoping to get them through to planting or, take cuttings from them :)
never grown them like this but it's worth a go :)
Quote from: Sinbad7 on January 04, 2009, 19:26:56
So, do the shoots look the same as they do on an ordinary potato?
Sinbad
Not really. It grows like a vine, so the shoots are thinner than a normal potato and they curve a bit. The leaves are a bit ivy-ish in shape and colour.
mine grew a shoot then a leaf from the shoot as ceres said ivy ish shaped if i remember rightly the leaf came very early on in the growth of the shoot
I tried cuttings Manics but they all died on me... :-[
I am expecting it, saddad but, we live in hope ;D
I am real keen to grow my own slips, so I did the sticks and water thing about two weeks ago and I have a long cotton bit growing from the side, would this be likely to be a slip, given time? ;D
Sinbad
Ah no! The bit of the potato in the water grows a huge tangled mass of white roots. Usually mine have put out some roots before they start shooting.
It's a good sign though - it's alive!
Saddad, can you remind us where you buy yours from- think I'd have more luck with bought slips.
well that settles it will get one on the go asap thanks folks
;D
LOL, thank you Ceres.
Maybe I had better start again as the potato itself isn't looking any too good. Mind, it does have a big sturdy root in the water, I'd better give it a while longer though. Will go and inspect to see if the root is doing anything.
Sinbad
It's started to grow roots ;D ;D So are they going to be the slips?
Sinbad
nope the roots are white thin stringy things then the slips grew from the top half of the potato and if i remember rightly they started off purple like a chit on a normal potato but quickly opened up to a leaf all grew up from the top half of the potato
this is how ours grew :)
Ohhhhhhhhhhhh, thanks debs, excitement short lived ;D ;D
Sinbad
They look magic manics, thank you for posting them. Will go and buy a couple of potatoes tomorrow now and start again.
Sinbad
Sinbad, if your potato has roots already, don't bin it unless it's gone soft or rotting. It will take weeks more for the slips to start coming. I think it has a lot to do with light levels. Mine were quite slow to start last year but then romped away as it got brighter for longer. You've got roots which is a start!
This is how I started mine last year, and the slips did eventually come. They do have a long growing season though. I think last year I started mine too late, so this week it is!
Hi, I tried growing them from my own slips last year. The vine looked really healthy and was growing well but when I lifted the plants, the 'roots' had not swelled and I was left with lots of very thin red 'roots'. What do you think my chances are of using these to get new growth? I was going to try and get slips from them. The plants were grown in a plastic tent in large pots and the roots still look OK.
Sweet potato showing slips. These are gently rubbed off and potted up as soon as they are large enough to handle.
(http://downtheplot.com/images/sweet_potato_chitting.jpg)
Link to unfinished web page for growing sweet potatoes:
http://downtheplot.com/batatas.php (http://downtheplot.com/batatas.php)
Quote from: newbies on January 04, 2009, 20:49:29
This is how I started mine last year, and the slips did eventually come. They do have a long growing season though. I think last year I started mine too late, so this week it is!
I'm not sure you'll get slips from the undeveloped tubers but you've not got a lot to lose by trying! As insurance though, I'd set a new full-size potato up to sprout or buy in some slips if you prefer.
Sweet potatoes are on offer in Sainsburys. £1 a bag. I think I might give it a go.
Janet.
i finally got my sweet potato to grow my slips I've got it sitting in water but i am not sure which is most important at this stage light or heat. can some one set me straight please.
(http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk187/thifasmom/IMG_1697.jpg)
My sweet potatoes have roots! They are in water above the fireplace. What spacing do the plants need?
Your potatoes have roots but have they produced shoots?
Do nothing until the tuber produces shoots. When these are large enough to handle remove them and pot on individually in a small pot. 3" or so. Grow on in good light.