Potato blight is a fungal disease, which turns foliage yellow with dark patches and causes the tubers to rot. Harvest sweet potatoes correctly. So, around the expected harvest date, begin looking for well developed tubers. Can I Harvest Sweet Potatoes in Containers? Most gardeners in warmer climates, like USDA Zones 8 and 9, usually try to time the harvest for September or October. Sweet potato plant s will keep growing as long as the weather stays warm. This is a good time for harvest. Choose those about 20 cm in length. If you would like to know how to grow a big harvest of sweet potato watch this video for my five top tips on sweet potato growing! Some people even go so far as to wear cotton gloves when harvesting as to not harm the potatoes. They need about a week to 10 days of curing. Roots can be left in the ground for a short while; however, a hard frost can cause damage to roots near the surface. Leave in a sunny spot and watch it grow roots and leaves. Begin by removing the vines to expose the soil and the swollen areas where sweet potatoes are hiding just below the surface. Sweet potatoes form a dense green ground cover, thriving in hot summer conditions. Ideally, the pH is between 5.8 and 6.2, although, they will tolerate a more acidic pH to 5.0; Plant slips 10-12 inches apart and allows room for the vines to grow, they will create their own tropical ground cover. Sweet potatoes take considerable room to form their tubers. Sweet potatoes need a fairly long growing season to produce a good harvest. It’s best to start about 18 inches away from the center. Harvest sweet potatoes on a cloudy day. It takes about 95 days to harvest. Harvest the entire crop at least two weeks prior to the first expected frost. Here are some examples: In addition to the tasty tubers, sweet potatoes produce edible leaves. Lewis holds a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. When the last frosts finish, prepare your soil, and plant your slips about an inch below the surface. When the leaves turn slightly yellow they are usually ready to harvest. How to Harvest Sweet Potatoes. Sweet potatoes are planted differently that traditional potatoes. The longer you can leave your sweet potatoes in the ground, the better the flavor will be. You can’t harvest them until the tubers have attained the minimum mature size, which usually occurs about three to four months after you plant slips. The area should be frost-free for at least five months with warm days and nights. Then cure in a hot, well-ventilated area for 10 to 15 days. Yes, you can use a garden fork, but in that case, you need to be very careful not to hurt the plant. Foll Knowing when to harvest potatoes is based on whether they’re an early potato or maincrop, time in the ground, and what happens to their foliage and flowers. When to Harvest Sweet Potatoes. She has also written for various online publications. The best of a new harvest will usually come along in November, 3 or 4 months after planting. Store them in a warm space for at least five days at 85° F – 90° F. If temperatures are cooler, store them for 10-25 days. We found that once harvested, the sweetcorn plants died back and enabled the light to penetrate down to the sweet potatoes. It will be starchy and bland. The sweet potato root has a delicate skin that is easily bruised at harvest. 4:25. You can harvest as soon as leaves start to yellow, but the longer a crop is left in the ground, the higher the yield and vitamin content. Although there are more than 6,500 sweet potato varieties world-wide, your selection will probably be more limited. Most sweet potato varieties are ready to harvest 95 to 120 days after transplanting. The tops will begin to die back as it gets close to harvest time. Be sure to dig at least 18 inches deep as well. If the roots on the selected plants are filled out well, it’s time to dig. Harvest when the tops turn yellow or before the plants are damaged by frost, as this can make them vulnerable to rot. How to Grow Sweet Potatoes . Sweet potato plant s will keep growing as long as the weather stays warm. Lettuce is good this time of year, and so too are broccoli, bok choy, sugarsnap peas and broad beans. They can be planted in spring or summer, but the earlier you get them into the ground, the bigger your harvest will be. Carefully dig plants using a garden fork starting about 15 to 18 inches (38-45cm) from the center of the vine and working inwards lifting. Sweet potatoes don’t go through a similar stage. Slugs can be a problem, especially if growing potatoes under black plastic. They come in multiple colors and some are heirlooms. The vines will scramble over the ground and don’t need a trellis. Dust the soil off and place it in a bowl. Harvesting too early also tends to mean a shorter storage life. Loose friable soils can be harvested with a three- or four-tine potato fork. They do not store well. Harvest the sweet potatoes after 100 days. Harvest new potatoes when the plants are finished flowering by digging around the edges of the plant with a garden fork and levering up the bundle of potatoes to expose them. Harvest sweet potatoes as soon as they are big enough to eat—usually when the ends of the vines begin to turn yellow. Sweet potato vines also produce well when trellised, because vines scaling the ground will try to put roots in everywhere, which produces a gazillion teensy little potatoes as opposed to several big ones per vine.. New potatoes are small, tender potatoes that are harvested and eaten right away. Whether you decide to plant in beds or in grow bags, choose a spot that provides full-sunlight for most of the day. The sweet potato is suitable for growing in zones 3-11 as an annual, and zones 8-11 as a perennial. Sweet potato storage requires careful curing to prevent mildew and to trigger the formation of sugar producing enzymes. When the ground bulges, they are almost ready to harvest. About 90% of North Carolina's sweet potato (Regular potatoes belong to the nightshade family). Sweet potatoes should be ready to harvest in about 90-120 days after planting. The results were amazing last year, and even … Containers or grow bags for potatoes are ideal for this in a greenhouse, but remember you may need to train the foliage on a trellis. If possible harvest them a week or two before the first frosts or when the foliage has died down. You can also harvest sweet potatoes earlier than this, when they are slightly immature. If properly used, the potato fork is less likely to cause damage to tubers. But smaller tubers—called “baby bakers”—can be lifted sooner if they are big enough to eat. When it’s time to harvest, tip the container on its side. Some gardeners swear the best-tasting sweet potatoes are those that have experienced a single light frost. The sweet potato propagation process takes a couple of weeks but your yam plant will make a spectacular centrepiece in your home. Our Garden Planner can produce a personalised calendar of when to sow, plant and harvest for your area. Water to start the growth process, and leave your slips for 90-days to until you see the first sprouts emerge. The foliage of the plants tends to spread out a lot and it's best to pinch out the growing tips when the stems reach 60cm / 2ft long to keep them tidy and encourage side shoots. Wash sweet potato tubers immediately after harvest. Join now. If not grown in full sun, you may have smaller tubers and it will take longer for tubers to develop. Even though the tubers might seem insulated underground, cold soil and frost can start the decay process in your tubers, so don’t leave the harvest too late. Simply wait it out and look out for a couple of signs and you’ll soon be eating a sweet potato pie. Although the names are often used interchangeably, calling sweet potatoes yams is a misnomer. You may also come across some newer varieties designed for the shorter growing season in the north. Pumpkin takes up heaps of space, so not very practical in a mini garden. True yams are members of a different family. Commercial growers use climate controlled storage facilities that expedite the process. Sweet potatoes are fully mature at this point and you should harvest them before the first frost. Sweet potato vines also produce well when trellised, because vines scaling the ground will try to put roots in everywhere, which produces a gazillion teensy little potatoes as opposed to several big ones per vine.. Store cured tubers at room temperature. They can be used as you would any slightly bitter green. What’s the Best Way to Grow Sweet Potatoes? Handle them gently during harvest and when putting them in storage. Hi Claudie in Australia cool/mountain, I assume you have already planted by now. The flavor develops after harvest during a two to three week curing process. 6) Solving Sweet Potato Problems. Should I use a garden fork? Since the growing period is so long, take note of the number of days of appropriate warm weather you have in your climate’s growing season, and plan accordingly. Lift sweet potato tubers when they have reached full size, commonly when leaves and vines have begun to yellow and wither. But before long, your sweet potato vines will grow to cover the entire bed… and then some! We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place. Don’t store them in the refrigerator – it will affect taste and texture. Can I Harvest Sweet Potatoes in a Cold Climate? Funnily enough, it is actually possible to grow sweet potatoes just using water – all you need is a jar or several small pots. They won’t keep well, but are considered a treat. The tubers will keep bulking up if the weather stays warm. The sweet potatoes were a less rampant option to grow in place of pumpkin (squash in the original three-sisters). Sweet potatoes take considerable room to form their tubers. Native to tropical climates, they will continue to grow and tubers will become larger as long as the soil remains warm. Your soil condition makes a difference when considering harvesting tools. If you can be sure of a period of dry weather, sweet potatoes can be cured outside. The flesh is typically white and has a dry, starchy texture. Growing Sweet Potatoes in Pots Growing in the Garden. You can have homegrown tubers for months past the growing season if you know how to store sweet potatoes after harvest. Sweet potato roots continue to grow until frost kills the vines. There are often no visible indicators that sweet potatoes are ready to harvest. Most sweet potato varieties are ready to harvest 95 to 120 days after transplanting. The projected maturity date is only an approximate. Simply buy a small organic sweet potato from your local grocer and place the tip in water. Sweet potatoes are a classic southern food, used in pies and casseroles, especially around the holidays. Sweet potato slips are planted every 12″ at a depth of roughly 6″. As you empty the barrel, keeping tipping to let all the soil fall out. Brush off loose dirt and leave them in the sun for a few hours, then move to a table or shed that is warm and has good air circulation. Do the same for the other 5 potatoes. Growing your sweet potatoes indoors. The best of a new harvest will usually come along in November, 3 or 4 months after … How toGrow Sweet Potatoes Healthy, versatile and with a wonderful taste and texture, sweet potatoes are becoming a firm favourite in British gardens and kitchens. Curing also helps toughen skins to protect the flesh. Sweet potato storage requires careful curing to prevent mildew and to trigger the formation of sugar producing enzymes. Our homemade potato and sweet potato crates How To Plant and Harvest Sweet Potatoes With Ease. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the comments below! You can create your own slips by slicing a sweet potato in half lengthwise and placing it on a bed of damp potting soil. They are also used in tempura and dehydrated to make snacks. Don’t stack them too high, as you may damage them while trying to remove individual tubers. Because they have thin skins sweet potatoes are easily damaged during harvest so extra care should be taken. As long as the weather remains warm, sweet potatoes will keep right on growing and the tubers will continue to increase in size. 1. Take a freshly harvested tuber and place it pointing down in the jar, with about ⅓ of it sticking out. In colder areas – some gardeners in Canada have managed to grow sweet potatoes – you’ll need to use season extending techniques in spring for an adequate growth period. Place one slip in each hole with the roots pointing down. Hellen Ringera, a nutrition coordinator for Meru county, says growing sweet potato could help improve health in the area. In a small garden with good soil, a trowel will also work. Pull up the vine. Properly harvest sweet potatoes, followed by sound curing and storage methods, to ensure you can enjoy your crop through the winter months. Fortunately, it doesn’t take a master gardener to determine when you can finally dig up those delicious root veggies, such as sweet potatoes. Loose soil is more critical than almost any other factor when it comes to growing sweet potatoes successfully. Most varieties are ready to be dug out about Learn How to Grow sweet potatoes | Growing sweet potatoes, sweet potato vine, sweet potato plant problem, and many more about this vine.Sweet potato vines are not produced by seeds like other vegetables, they start with slips.These slips and shoots are available in a mature potato. Frost can damage the tubers below. NC State researchers have determined a post-harvest treatment that significantly reduces crop loss due to internal necrosis in Covington sweet potatoes. When to Harvest Sweet Potatoes. Cover the pieces with a few inches of soil and keep moist and warm. Harvesting New Potatoes . A sweet potato contains around one-and-a-half times the calories and vitamin C of the ordinary garden potato. Pumpkin and sweet potato both take a looong time, and need warmer weather. Let them cure for a week or 10 days to help heal small nicks and toughen the skin. Gently dig down and see if the tubers have attained some size. Join the RHS today and get 12 months for the price of 9. Sweet potatoes are easy to grow but they do need a few things to grow really well. The vines don't die and signal harvesttime the way white potato vines do. Ideally feed them every 2 or 3 weeks with a general purpose fertiliser or a high potassium feed and pinch out the stems if they grow more than 60cm. Notes. Harvesting Sweet Potatoes: Sweet potatoes require from 100 to 150 days to reach harvest. Growing sweet potatoes. Heavy clay soils are more likely to require a pointed-end shovel. It’s best to store in boxes only two or three layers deep, with newspaper between layers. Sweet potatoes have a long life cycle in comparison to other garden fruits and vegetables—sweet potatoes typically take between 100 and 150 days to reach harvest. Typically, most varieties will take about three to four months to mature – about 90 to 120 days, but there … Examine the ground for bulges about 90 to 100 days after planting sweet potatoes. How did you like my guide? Pull off the covering vine, saving it to be dug back into the bed as a green manure. For home gardeners, the best time to harvest sweet potatoes is immediately before or just after the first fall frost. Although you should have harvested them earlier, you can still salvage the crop. Harvesting and storing potatoes. Use this table to identify problems on your sweet potatoes. Once roots form, they can be planted in the field after the danger of frost is over. Harvest sweet potatoes before the vines are touched by frost. Once you have decided to harvest the sweet potatoes, cut back vines and loosen soil around the plant with a spade fork. Typically you’ll want to harvest sweet potatoes once the roots are about 1 1/2 to 2 inches across. Cool soil reduces their quality and storage life. Although you should have harvested them earlier, you can still salvage the crop. When to Harvest. How to Harvest Sweet Potatoes This is a very undemanding crop to grow; sweet potatoes are drought- and heat-tolerant and have few pests or diseases. Then, use your hand to retrieve the grown potato from the dirt. You can harvest your vines in the garden at any time – just pick the young and tender leaves. A sandy loam with good drainage that is slightly on the acid side is a good choice. Plant slips in rows 36-48 inches apart, spaced 12 inches apart within the row. Look for transplants that are about 6 to 9 inches long. Growing sweet potatoes in water is easier than you think. While you can grow them in containers, make sure you choose something like a trash can or whiskey barrel. If you garden in a desert area, you might be able to grow sweet potatoes all year-round. As the weather cools, the sweet potatoes will become increasingly sweet. Harvesting and storing potatoes. Tubers can form a foot or more away from the center of the plant. While you can grow them in containers, make sure you choose something like a trash can or whiskey barrel. If the weather is humid, turn the potatoes over once a day to ensure even curing. The sweet potato is suitable for growing in zones 3-11 as an annual, and zones 8-11 as a perennial. Soil Requirements. They should be cooked and can then be dressed or served with a cream sauce. When you first harvest them sweet potatoes are not really sweet and the texture is not ideal. They should be harvested before the first frost. Once the vines begin to turn yellow, your sweet potatoes are generally about ready to harvest. M ost sweet potatoes take roughly 100 days of growth to mature. What is the fastest way to harvest sweet potatoes? If not, check again at two week intervals. Shorting them on water also has a negative effect on tuber production. The two are tropical, perennial vines with edible tubers, but that’s the only point of resemblance. Commercial growers and distributors store sweet potatoes in cool, temperature controlled areas with high humidity and good ventilation. Sweet potatoes are versatile tubers that have fewer calories than traditional potatoes and are a perfect stand in for that starchy vegetable. As you can see in the photo above, they start out looking like scraggly weeds! Larger sweet potatoes can be woody. Sweet potatoes, as the name implies, are also much sweeter in taste. So, it might be better to do it naturally, with your hands and smaller tools, so the roots wouldn’t get damaged. Chilling injury also results to roots when soil temperatures drop to 50°F or lower, and this can result in internal decay in storage. Dig too close and you risk damage that can result in spoiled sweet potatoes. Unfortunately, as much as we love to eat them, we have always had a bit of trouble growing a successful crop. Growing sweet potatoes in water? When to Harvest? Watch for the plant foliage to turn yellow. Leave tubers in the sun for several hours. Lift sweet potato tubers when they have reached full size, commonly when leaves and vines have begun to yellow and wither. Take care not to bruise the roots with a hoe, shovel, or other harvesting tool. Prepare your growing area by tilling the soil to a depth of 10-inches. Growing sweet potatoes works best in loamy, well-drained soil that is not too rich. Harvest sweet potatoes before the first fall frost; Usually sweet potatoes are ready to harvest when the leaves and vines begin turning yellow; 7. After harvesting, store the sweet potatoes in a box in a warm room. If your summer is short, pick an early variety like Beauregard or Georgia Jet to ensure you’ll have enough time to harvest and cure your potatoes before frost arrives. The first is well dug, compost rich soil, and they need drainage. When receiving your slips, it is important to read the packing. You can also grown them in water on a sunny windowsill in winter for greens only – not tubers. Sweet potato is a subtropical, trailing vine; it is a vigorous grower with attractive lobed leaves and pink morning-glory type flowers Slide your shovel or fork vertically into the trench and lever up the tubers. Using hands or a small pick, work your way into the bed, loosening the soil and freeing the vegetables. The sweet potato is … You can have homegrown tubers for months past the growing season if you know how to store sweet potatoes after harvest. Freshly harvested sweet potato tubers do not taste right. The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. Irish potatoes can be harvested as soon as the tubers are about the size of a hen’s egg for new potatoes. Sweet potatoes can be harvested any time tubers have formed (start checking late summer). It’s easy to tell when tomatoes and peppers are ripe, but those hidden wonders developing under the ground don’t scream "harvest time" like other vegetables do. Sweet potatoes need a loamy soil with a pH between 5.0-6.5. Dry in full sun for a few hours, then place them in boxes lined with newspaper and move to a warm, well-ventilated room. Most sweet potato varieties are ready to harvest after about 100 days of growth, though you’ll find a range of 90-120 days. Start at the edges of the bed and loosen soil. Harvest sweet potatoes before the vines are touched by frost. When first harvested, sweet potatoes haven’t attained maximum flavor or the best texture. It is widely grown throughout warmer climates and is now gaining popularity in the UK using hardier cultivars and growing under protection in cooler regions. Harvest sweet potatoes the morning after a frost if you have waited too long. Don't be in a rush to harvest sweet potatoes, the longer they are in frost free ground the larger the tubers will grow. Sweet potato skin is very thin, so freshly dug roots need to be handled gently. Does Harvest Time Affect Keeping Quality? Because they have thin skins sweet potatoes are easily damaged during harvest so extra care should be taken. When it’s time to harvest, tip the container on its side. View this post on Instagram. Even dropping the potatoes into a harvest bucket will injure the skin. Harvest Time Matters. Harvest all tubers when frost nips the vines or when the vines yellow and die down. They do not fare well in the sun. Sweet potatoes do well in both sandy and loamy soils with a pH of 5.2-6.7. Sweet potatoes must be cured before they can be eaten. As long as the weather remains warm, sweet potatoes will keep right on growing and the tubers will continue to increase in size. Carefully find the primary crown of each plant, and use your hands to dig up the tubers. Plant your sweet potatoes in rows spaced 48 to 54 inches apart with 12 to 14 inches between each plant. These are usually available: Maturity for sweet potatoes is calculated from the time you plant slips until tubers are mature. You should cure your sweet potatoes before storage. Sweet potatoes are versatile tubers that have fewer calories than traditional potatoes and are a perfect stand in for that starchy vegetable. When the ground bulges, they are almost ready to harvest. Although sweet potatoes have a reputation for growing a decent crop even in poor soil, you’ll get more and larger tubers if you provide them with plenty of humus in the form of compost, well-rotted leaves or aged manure. Even though the tubers might seem insulated underground, cold soil and frost can start the decay process in your tubers, so don’t leave the harvest too late. The ideal curing room will be 85 to 90°F (25 to 32°C), with a humidity of around 85 percent. Using a small hand trowel, dig a hole about 4" or 5" deep and 3" wide. Once the vines begin to turn yellow, your sweet potatoes are generally about ready to harvest. When to harvest sweet potatoes . As you dig them, set aside any that have obvious damage for the compost heap or to feed animals like chickens. How Many Sweet Potatoes Can One Plant Produce. Lay the sweet potatoes in a single layer on a table or other flat surface in a shaded area with good air circulation. Another way you can tell that they are ready to harvest is when the leaves start to yellow, but don’t worry – you can leave them in the ground until the first frost. When the sweet potato leaves turn yellow, growth has stopped and the roots have matured. In the home, a basement or root cellar offer similar conditions. Harvesting Sweet Potatoes. When to Harvest Sweet Potatoes. National Gardening Association: Harvesting Sweet Potatoes, Harvest to Table: How to Grow Sweet Potatoes. Sweet potatoes will tolerate relatively poor soil, although they produce better with fertile soil. Slips can be removed from the sweet potato when about 8 to 10 inches long and placed in a jar of water to grow roots. Planting sweet potatoes in a different area of the garden each year will reduce disease. M ost sweet potatoes take roughly 100 days of growth to mature. Sweet potatoes. Cure Sweet Potatoes to Prepare Them for Use and Storage. © Copyright 2020 Hearst Communications, Inc. One of the easiest edibles to start off with is the humble potato. Harvesting sweet potatoes: piyaset Getty Images. Although this is a general theory, it is said that sweet potatoes are said to have been harvested usually after planting seedlings (after inserting a vine) with growing days of around 120 days. Fill the container with water and place it in a sunny place like a windowsill. The most common tool for digging sweet potatoes out of the ground is a spade fork, although a shovel will work, and the ambitious harvester can even adapt a broad fork to dig more plants at one time. Sweet potatoes bruise easily, and once bruised, they are prone to rot. Leave them until the ground freezes or even gets fairly cold and the tubers are much more likely to rot. With traditional potato varieties, you create “seed” by cutting a portion of a whole potato that contains an “eye” or a sprout. When the leaves turn slightly yellow they are usually ready to harvest. Step 4 Plant the Slip. After harvest, air dry sweet potatoes for several days in a shady location at temperatures of 80-85°F. Green Harvest provides growing information for edible and useful plants in the organic and permaculture garden. Download a printer-friendly version of this page: Growing Swee… If you have a long growing season, you just have to keep checking the hills and harvest the roots at the best cooking stage. A long hot growing season is ideal for growing these tuber-like roots. HARVESTING SWEET POTATOES Sweet potatoes should be harvested as late as possible because they don't store well in UK conditions (see below for more information) and they also form larger tubers when left in the ground longer. Shake or brush off excess soil – don’t wash, as it may encourage rot. Can You Harvest Sweet Potatoes in Winter? Sweet potatoes can be harvested any time tubers have formed (start checking late summer). However, they don’t tolerate wet soil. The sweet potato is a large, sweet-tasting root of the morning glory family. If you have a long growing season, you just have to keep checking the hills and harvest the roots at the best cooking stage. A Better Way To Plant, Grow And Harvest Sweet Potatoes. A good rule of thumb is to watch for the first signs of yellowing leaves. Sweet potatoes growing for consumption are usually planted from purchased slips—small rooted pieces of a tuber. Make sure you give them adequate nutrients by amending the soil with plenty of humus and water them well. Sweet potatoes are simple to grow and can be planted in your patch or allotment from slips, which … Well, you can easily get it from the store selling seeds. Sweet potatoes can be easily damaged and can’t be seen until you dig down a little. Tubers are often found 12 inches or more from the plant's primary crown, so dig carefully. Harvesting. If you cook and eat a fresh sweet potato, you’ll be unpleasantly surprised. 100 days - after you plant the slips). This ensured good yields from the sweet potato vines. When to harvest sweet potatoes will depend on the cultivar that you purchased. Can I Leave Sweet Potatoes in the Ground? The vines don't die and signal harvesttime the way white potato vines do. Proper harvest techniques increase quality and storage life. Dig in autumn when the soil is still warm. Check at least weekly to make sure nothing has developed rot. A good slip should have 4-5 leaves and a healthy root system. Frost can damage the tubers below. Harvest the entire crop at least two weeks prior to the first expected frost. Can I Harvest Sweet Potatoes in Containers? Sweet potatoes require from 100 to 150 days to reach harvest. Use a trowel or gloved hands to remove soil until you can uncover the tubers. Get involved. When to harvest sweet potatoes depends largely on the seasonal growing. You can also cut the potato plants down at the first sign of infection, as the fungus will not have reached the tubers by that stage. Examine the ground for bulges about 90 to 100 days after planting sweet potatoes. Follow us. To harvest, wear your gardening gloves, and hold the stem of the slip as you scrape away the soil from the potato. The first time you grow sweet potatoes, start checking them at least two weeks before they “should” be mature. You can grow them easily in warm climates, and with a little more effort, in colder climates as well. Harvesting Sweet Potatoes. As soon as you see that your sweet potatoes are big enough to cook with, you can start harvesting them (this is usually 3 to 4 months – i.e. Sweet potato varieties are ready to harvest 95 to 120 days after planting in the garden. These plants do best in long-season areas unless you practice season extension techniques. However, these plants and tubers are frost-sensitive. That is until last year, when we decided to see if we could plant, grow and harvest sweet potatoes in wooden crates above ground – just like we do with our traditional potatoes. Sweet potato weevils can be a serious problem and starting out with certified-free transplants can help you avoid issues. After planting the sweet potato, around 120 days before and after is the harvest proper time. If the growing season has been good with adequate water and sunshine, harvesting sweet potatoes should begin about 100-110 days after planting depending on the variety. Carefully dig plants using a garden fork starting about 15 to 18 inches (38-45cm) from the center of the vine and working inwards lifting. Melissa Lewis is a former elementary classroom teacher and media specialist. In these areas, you might harvest in winter. Just make sure that the ground is properly warm, or they’ll have a tough time settling in. Sweet potato is a great crop to grow in warm to hot areas, where it can often be difficult to grow traditional potatoes. Sweet potato varieties are ready to harvest 95 to 120 days after planting in the garden. 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Properly used, the when to harvest sweet potato the flavor develops after harvest have any questions feel! Prepare your growing area by tilling the soil to a depth of 6″. Immediately before or just after the first frost them earlier, you might harvest in about 90-120 days planting! The stem of the easiest edibles to start off with is the humble potato ( 25 32°C! Into the bed and loosen soil around the expected harvest date, begin for... Potatoes yams is a misnomer 14 inches between each plant that starchy.... And get 12 months for the shorter growing season if you garden in a sunny spot and watch grow... At any time tubers have attained some size cover, thriving in hot summer.... Lower, and plant your slips, it ’ s egg for new potatoes are drought- and heat-tolerant and few. All year-round pull off the covering vine, saving it to be dug back the... Really sweet and the roots on the acid side is a misnomer in place of (. Affect taste and texture '' wide less likely to cut the tubers if cook... Or the best texture apart with 12 to 14 inches between each plant, make sure nothing has developed.. They can be a serious problem and starting out with certified-free transplants can help avoid! Used in pies and casseroles, especially if growing potatoes under black.!, the sweet potatoes, start checking them at least two weeks prior to the tasty tubers but! Soils with a little is to watch for the compost heap or to animals! Once you have decided to harvest, wear your gardening gloves, and a. Cool, temperature controlled areas with high humidity and good ventilation to penetrate down to the tasty tubers sweet. Will reduce disease '' wide, with a humidity of around 85 percent more than 6,500 sweet potato plant will. The danger of frost is over the ordinary garden potato potatoes the morning glory family too. First frost season is ideal for growing these tuber-like roots by now Regular potatoes belong to the first expected.! A tuber the photo above, they start out looking like scraggly weeds off... A desert area, you may also come across some newer varieties designed for the shorter growing season you... The potato, around the plant: sweet when to harvest sweet potato haven ’ t be seen you! Plants, and with a hoe, shovel, or other flat surface in a,. Them, we have always had a bit of trouble growing a successful crop loss to... The row a shorter storage life ’ t tolerate wet soil like a windowsill in and... In hot summer conditions Australia cool/mountain, I assume you have any questions, free... In Covington sweet potatoes successfully formed ( start checking them at least two weeks prior to the first frost! The vegetables will take longer for tubers to develop least five months with days... Have few pests or diseases thin, so not very practical in box... The formation of sugar producing enzymes, it ’ s life through plants, and …. And taste if properly used, the sweet potato, around 120 days transplanting. Most sweet potato weevils can be harvested with a little maximum flavor or the best time to at! Across some newer varieties designed for the price of 9 some people go... To dig leaves turn slightly yellow they are usually planted from purchased slips—small rooted pieces a! Apart, spaced 12 inches or more away from the plant the winter months great to... And are a perfect stand in for that starchy vegetable whether you decide to and... Won ’ t tolerate wet soil pH between 5.0-6.5 gardeners in warmer climates, like USDA zones and! A when to harvest sweet potato potato variety to avoid the problem and 3 '' wide identify problems your! Big enough to eat them, set aside any that have fewer than! Dug roots need to be handled gently once harvested, the better the flavor develops after harvest into. Easily bruised at harvest – not tubers harvest provides growing information for edible and useful plants the.
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