The sweet potato vines will continue growing in water for months or even years, whether from cuttings or from a tuber. Pots spilling with sweet potato vines are particularly attractive. Both types grow best in sunny conditions, but if you want to grow the garden varieties that produce edible tubers, it will take quite a long growing season. Fill the jar or glass with enough water to cover the bottom half of the tuber. Use a well-draining pot large enough to accommodate it comfortably. Make sure to keep the bottom of the tuber submerged in water. Or, if you will plant the edible sweet potatoes in the ground, then the slips can be started in seedling pots, also. Sunlight and water are difficult to spread evenly between all 6 of the slips. A container has the advantage that it will warm up the soil better. That’s it! The same techniques that apply to growing potatoes in the ground apply to growing them in containers. If the tuber is too hard, you can drive a small hole with a thin nail, then stick the toothpick into it. Growing in Containers. Sweet potatoes are known for their sprawling habit, but … Indoors: Grow sweet potatoes in a glasshouse in large tubs, growing-bags or the glasshouse border, transplanting from the pots once they have produced plenty of roots. Depending on the size of the container, you may have to pot again or prune the roots if the plant becomes root-bound within the pot. Avoid compost that's rich in nitrogen fertilizer. The sweet potatoes will remain unspoiled at room temperature for up to a year if you've given them time to form a suberin coat. And unlike regular potatoes, their meandering, snaking vine grows like a giant’s intestines. Step One: Select a variety of sweet potato that is ideal for growing in containers. Depending on the variety, though, it will usually take 100 to 140 days for them to fully mature. In the North, cover the raised rows with black plastic to keep th… The next step is to place the tuber in water to sprout. If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. [1] This could be as long as a month after your last frost date. Growing from Slips. By using The Spruce, you accept our, 10 Root Vegetables You Can Successfully Grow, 7 Fun Container Garden Projects Kids Will Love, How to Grow Organic Potatoes in Your Garden. Pull the toothpicks out of the potato and cover it completely with soil. The Spruce uses cookies to provide you with a great user experience. Fill the container with high-quality potting soil until the surface of the soil reaches about 1 inch below the rim. Lay each slip into a shallow bowl with the bottom of the stem submerged in water and the leaves hanging over the edge of the bowl. Each sweet potato can produce up to 50 slip sprouts. Make a hole in the center of the soil, deep enough to cover the roots of the slip. Planting sweet potatoes in containers. Growing sweet potatoes in water is easier than you think. Be sure to select bush varieties, which produce shorter vines when growing a potted sweet potato plant. This process causes a thin protective layer to form on the outer skin of the potato known as suberin. Place each section in a jar or glass of water with half of the potato below the water and half above. Parents: Is your child REALLY ready for a dog? Sweet potatoes come in two general forms: vegetable varieties bred for their edible roots, and as varieties bred specifically for their ornamental trailing foliage. A hanging basket is a good choice for this plant’s vining habit. If you don't have a drill, you can use a sharp knife to cut holes into the bottom of the bucket, but be very careful not to cut yourself. Sweet potatoes love to … There are 13 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. If you are growing edible tubers as vegetables, you'll need a large container or bucket to allow them adequate room to grow. In addition to compost and soil, they can be raised in coir, perlite, and other mediums that make growing simple and tidy. Check with local agricultural groups for their planting calendars to get a good idea when to plant the potato slips. The sweet potato propagation process takes a couple of weeks but your yam plant will make a spectacular centrepiece in your home. Once the sweet potato tuber has sprouted, your next step is to separate the sprouts into individual "slips" that can be planted. Likely varieties for sweet potato container crops are … However, wet soil means root rot, so make sure your containers … Learn more... Sweet potatoes make for a nutritious and filling side dish to most meals. Growing sweet potato bought from shop. When the new roots are about one inch long, the slips can be planted in potting soil. This allows the sweet potato to grow easily but not remain in a moist environment that encourages rot and disease. The misconception that sweet potatoes can only be grown in warm countries isn’t entirely true, since they can be grown in containers and kept indoors to keep the soil warm. That’s how to grow sweet potatoes in a pot. Temperature and Humidity. You can harvest vegetable varieties of sweet potatoes at any stage and they will be edible. First, they need supplemental water, especially for a water hungry crop like sweet potatoes. Simply buy a small organic sweet potato from your local grocer and place the tip in water. Locate the middle of each tuber piece and insert three or more toothpicks into it; they should go about 1/2 to 1 inch into the tuber. While you could grow sweet potatoes slips yourself, it is always a good idea to start out with certified disease-free plants or vine cuttings from a reputable garden supply. Planting Your Sweet Potato Crop. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Put your pot in a sunny indoor spot and keep the soil moist, but not wet. All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published, This article was co-authored by our trained team of editors and researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness. Many gardeners reference ‘Portio Rico’ (also referred to as ‘Bush’ or ‘Vineless’) as an ideal variety for smaller gardens or containers. It takes 100 to 140 days for sweet potatoes to grow harvestable tubers, depending on the variety. Growing Sweet Potatoes in Containers to Save on Space. But make sure discard any slip that is wilting or that hasn't produced any roots; these won't be viable. Research source Then gently put one or two slips into the hole and pat the soil firm around them. If you don't want to use your hand, you can also use a small garden spade to dig the holes. The individual shoots that will sprout from the tuber are known as "slips," and these will be used to create new sweet potato plants. The sweet potato is suitable for growing in zones 3-11 as an annual, and zones 8-11 as a perennial. We've decided to try our hands at growing sweet potatoes — we've really got nothing to lose other than half a potato if we fail. Growing sweet potato on terrace in pots: Sweet potato (Ipomea batatas) belongs to a member of the Convolvulaceae, or morning glory family. Space the toothpicks evenly around the circumference of the tuber. And, wait, again. Check that the slips are leafy and over 3 inches (7.6 cm) tall. Only a few inexpensive items are required to propagate your own sweet potato plants: To get started, look for firm sweet potatoes without any major bad spots. If the tubers are not sprouting, replace the tap water with distilled water. Leave all of the stems exposed. Sweet Potato in Bags. Be sure to water them everyday. Growing Sweet Potatoes In A Container. By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. Use a pair of gardening gloves to avoid getting soil under your fingertips. Sweet potatoes also like loose, well-drained soil. To double check that the sweet potato is suitable to use, ask the farmer or booth worker if they’ve sprayed the potatoes with BudNip or other sprout inhibitor. Fill the container and create a raised area on one side of the container with the soil. (A 10-foot row will produce 8 to 10 pounds of potatoes.) Plant ornamental sweet potato vine in a container filled within 1 inch of the top with commercial potting soil. Potted sweet potatoes prefer well-draining, sandy soil with added compost. Many gardeners reference ‘Portio Rico’ (also referred to as ‘Bush’ or ‘Vineless’) as an ideal variety for smaller gardens or containers. Sweet potatoes need a loamy soil with a pH between 5.0-6.5. Have fun growing them from slips to harvest. L IKE regular potatoes, sweet potatoes are starchy tubers that form underground. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. This article has been viewed 20,613 times. The temperature must stay above {[convert|50|F|C}} if you're leaving the bucket outside. Take each sprout and very carefully separate it from the tuber by gently twisting it. It may take a few weeks or even a month before you see green growth sprouting from the top of the tuber. Kerry Michaels is a writer and photographer with several years specializing in gardening and landscape design. Sweet potatoes bred as edible vegetables have much larger, sweeter tuberous roots, and their foliage is less attractive. To start your slips, you need several healthy, clean sweet potatoes. If you want to grow sweet potatoes in a container, plant the rooted slip into a pot or grow bag big enough to grow nice tubers. Be careful not to cut or knick the stem of the slip while you’re trimming the leaves, as this can cause the potato to sprout from an undesirable spot on the slip. Since last year I harvested five pounds of sweet potatoes from one pot, I decided to try that method again with the Mericlone slips. X % of people told us that this article helped them. Sweet potatoes are typically started from transplants called "slips." They must be planted in a well-drained, fine sandy loam soil with a slightly acidic pH 5 to 7.5. Whether you decide to plant in beds or in grow bags, choose a spot that provides full-sunlight for most of the day. Place the tuber with its toothpicks on the top of the jar so the ends of the toothpicks rest on the edge of the glass or jar with the pointed end of the tuber facing down. This is natural. In some parts of the country, that means that propagating your own plants will need to start about 6 to 12 weeks before the last frost date. You can buy slips from garden centers, nurseries, or local farmers. I have one plant of each variety in five large pots containing a good mix … Sweet potatoes are known for their sprawling habit, but … If you want to grow your sweet potato vines as decorative plants, find a small three- or four-inch seedling pot with good drainage. To keep the temperature regular, you may need to place the jar in a sunny window and replace cooler water with warm water 2 times every day. But the heart-leafed vine that produces sweet potatoes requires a longer growing season (100 to 140 days) and warmer soil than the kind of plant that produces regular "white" potatoes. Slips or transplants for growing sweet potatoes in a container may be purchased from the local nursery or grown yourself. As long as you have good drainage and follow the growing tips below, you can grow sweet potatoes pretty much anywhere. The foliage can be trained up string, canes or trellis. In any case, they should be harvested before the first frost in the fall for best edibility. Last Updated: March 29, 2019 If it's moist at your fingertip, wait a day or two. Nutritious and easy to grow, you can plant it just about anywhere so long as the soil is free draining and the plant gets plenty of sun. Learn tips for creating your most beautiful (and bountiful) garden ever. It also helps to harden off the new plants by acclimating them gradually to the outdoors before putting them into their permanent locations. Plant the sweet potato in a container of potting soil when each vine has as least four to six leaves. So, that is the reason why setting up a … Do not plant the whole potato in the ground, instead grow slips, them root them before putting in the ground. Both types belong to the Ipomoea batata species, a tender perennial normally grown as an annual, and both ornamental and edible varieties are quite easy to grow in pots. Whether you are planting your edible sweet potatoes in the ground or ornamental sweet potatoes in large mixed pots outdoors, wait until the outdoor soil is at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit (this occurs when air temperatures have been 65 degrees for quite some time). Tip: If your tap water is heavy with chlorine and other additives, it may prevent the tuber from sprouting. Avoid garden soil, which is too heavy and becomes compacted. When it comes to sweet potatoes which are grown in pots, they prefer soil, which has a sandy composition and that provides good enough draining. Old jam jars are a perfect size for most potatoes. Sweet potatoes are heat loving plants. Both types of sweet potato are widely available for sale as small container plants in the spring, but they are also easy to grow yourself by sprouting "slips" from pieces of the tubers, which is the method described here. To get the most flavor from your sweet potatoes and to extend their shelf life, cure them in a warm, dry place for 10 days to two weeks before eating. Unglazed pots and grow bags transpire easily and in hot, windy areas, may lose water quickly. Step One: Select a variety of sweet potato that is ideal for growing in containers. Leave in a sunny spot and watch it grow roots and leaves. Ornamental sweet potato vines (Ipomoea batatas) are classic "spiller" plants for container gardens. This type of soil will increase the growth of the leaves, but stunt the growth of the potato. wikiHow's Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards. Supermarket sweet potatoes are often sprayed with a chemical called “BudNip” that stops slips from sprouting. We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. Sweet potatoes will grow in poor soil, but deformed roots may develop in heavy clay or long and stringy in sandy dirt. Lay down the slips across the mound with the roots at the lowest end of the soil. It takes 100 to 140 days for sweet potatoes to grow harvestable tubers, depending on the variety. "This article told me all I need to know to grow my own sweet potatoes in a container from a tuber I have sprouting. The tubers need loose soil to grow large. Put the container on a sunny windowsill, and change the water every couple of days. As the stems grow upward, continue to add more of you soil mix until the level reaches the top of the container. Both types grow best in sunny conditions, but if you want to grow the garden varieties that produce edible tubers, it will take quite a long growing season. Slips are baby plants that sprout from a mature sweet potato. To create sprouts, carefully wash your potatoes and cut them either in half or in large sections. Both edible and ornamental varieties of sweet potato grow quite well in large pots. Water them and put the pot out in a sunny spot. References. Both edible and ornamental varieties of sweet potato grow quite well in large pots. Be sure to keep the growing sweet potatoes in pots temperature ranging from 60 to 85 F ( 15-30 C.... It will usually take 100 to 140 days for sweet potatoes are often sprayed with a contribution to wikiHow tip. Ads can be planted in potting soil until the level reaches the top of the soil better full..., continue to add more of you soil mix until the surface of the potato slips. ( 15-30 )... 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