Sweet potatoes would have to be hands down one of the easiest set and forget crops for us here in the subtropics. They are pretty resilient and hardy and grow when not much else will. They also make a very good ground cover.
You can find out more about a harvest of sweet potatoes via this YouTube video
So here are some tips and answers to some common questions about growing sweet potatoes.
Choose your space wisely
This is really important. It is near impossible to rid your bed of sweet potato tubers once they take hold. Either set a dedicated area for your sweet potatoes or put them in a contained area like a pot or tub, or just be prepare to weed them out as they pop up.
Sweet potato are triffid like and will take over an entire space. In one way it is a good problem to have, if you like eating sweet potatoes OR you need a productive ground cover.
In the subtropics people get their autumn crops into the ground in time because the 'cool season' is so short. And sweet potatoes are usually harvested in middle of autumn.
Will they grow in pots?
Absolutely. They are successfully grown in pots and bags. Like anything, the size of the pot will determine yield. Bigger pots equal more potatoes. It is not recommend attempting in anything smaller than 50cm.
From a pot around 75cm in diameter you can expect to harvest around 3kgs. Which is 10kgs less than what one grower got from a 1.5m bed. But if space is a concern and it’s too hot to grow much else then definitely give it a crack.
Does it need to flower?
No. The flowers are stunning and people love them. It is just the case that you just know when we get flowers we’re going to get huge ones. People say that they never get flowers in the ones they’ve grown in pots, but they still get a decent harvest.
How to propagate
If you have a tuber that is sprouting, you’ve got a plant. And they are so easy to duplicate from this point, you can simply take a cutting and pop it into water until it shoots and then plant it out.
If you have tubers from last year still left in the ground they’ll just re-sprout when they are are ready. Plants know when to show up.
Where to plant
Super important to success is good loose soil – see the video the difference between no dig vs where they tried to stretch out into the clay.
Great success can be had in a NOdig bed, that’s what people stick with once they've tried it.
Also full sun is a must, if they don’t get the full sun they won’t put much energy into the roots so you’ll get a lot of leaves instead. So find your sunniest and hottest spot for them.
When to plant
Start in Late Spring Early Summer – November – Early December. W
In the Subtropics they need that January rain to get going so they don’t do much if you plant them in spring anyway. It’s a good excuse to get a good Spring crop of beets in and then plant them out when not much else will grow.
If you time it right with the rains you won’t need to water them much either.
When to harvest
They take anywhere from 4-6 months depending on conditions. So you need patience and out in Early December with harvesting in Mid to late April.
A good indicator that they are ready is they will start to yellow and die back – if you live in hotter climates they may not do this.
You can have a little dig and see if you can find any and harvest what you need as well.
You can bandicoot for sweet potatoes as you need them
How to store them
Don’t wash them if you plan on storing them. The soil will help protect them. You then need to cure them, preferably in a warm dry spot when the weather is still humid. Lay them out so they can ‘cure’ for couple of weeks before storing in a dark spot.
Do not store them in the fridge as they will rot, they are kind of the opposite to most other crops where they need humidity to cure and don’t like it too cold.
Don’t forget the leaves
Yes you can eat them too! Many people use them as a summer spinach. They are great in stir fries as a replacement asian green.
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