Sproted a sweet potato, now what?

lauren_1

I have some quite spectacular sprout coming off a sweet potato that i put in the dark for a few weeks, im just wondering should i leave it a bit longer or plant?

lauren_1

As soon as i can find my camera i will post a few pics.

2cats1kid

Not an expert by any means, but friends who have grown sweet potatoes aren't far off harvesting now. Is it the right time of year to be starting them off?

MRSMCAWBER

Hi there

Im having a go at sweet potatoes for the 1st time this year -grown from slips grown from a supermarket one :T ... Mine have ben planted ages as they say you need 150 days of warmth for them to grow tubers -so i would think it is to late in the season for them...
I have since had loads more slips appear so im going to try potting them up and keeping them somewhere warm to try and get a head start next year

WestonDave

I've been wary of starting sweet potatoes as I'd heard that they struggle to form tubers in the sort of climate we have (not warm enough) and also because as a distant relation of bindweed they can get pretty invasive. I'd be interested to see how people get on with them as we do tend to eat a fair few of these.

MRSMCAWBER

Hi WestonDave

I will let you know how i get on :rotfl:
I am growing them in crates after reading just how invasive they are;) .. I have the crates in a coldframe/tent thingy so hopefully they might produce something..fingers crossed

looby-loo_2

They cost £5.95 EACH at my local nursery.

jabba4

If you plant the slips through some black plastic, you'll get the dual effect of smothering weeds and warming the soil. They do need a long growing season, and probably won't be ready for harvesting until September, maybe October. Just get them out of the ground before the first frost as they are badly affected by frost.

As another tip, you can grow the foliage up bean poles / bamboo canes to keep it out of the way. Looks nice, and I don't think it's invasive in the same way as bindweed.