Sweet potatoes are known by different names. They appear on the plate in restaurants as white potatoes, batatas or tubers and can increasingly be found in supermarkets. More and more hobby gardeners are venturing into cultivation.
When is sweet potato season?
Sweet potato season begins in October and ends as soon as the foliage appears yellow and wilted. If the leaves change color prematurely due to night frosts, an earlier harvest is possible, but with lower yields and smaller tubers.
Growth
Sweet potatoes are annual and not hardy because they come from tropical regions in Central and South America. Unlike the well-known potato, Ipomoea batatas is not a nightshade, but a morning glory.
Soil and location requirements
As heavy feeders, bulbous morning glories prefer humus- and nutrient-rich soil that provides a high nitrogen content. Uniform soil moisture encourages the plants to form daughter tubers and contributes to a bountiful harvest. A protected location in the sun creates optimal growth conditions because the plants cannot tolerate cold.
Prefer potatoes
From January you can pre-germinate the sweet potato on the windowsill. Insert three toothpicks into the center of the tuber. It's the same method as growing an avocado pit. The sticks serve as a support when you place the potato in a glass filled with water. After a few weeks, the shoots are 20 to 30 centimeters long, so you can plant the young plants in the bed.
Growing in the garden
Under Central European climate conditions, cultivation in raised beds and greenhouses or in a flower box is recommended. Mild regions allow outdoor cultivation. Growing from seeds is associated with low success rates due to the low germination rate. Instead, plant tubers in loose soil and ensure even moisture in the substrate and sufficient light.
Planting instructions:
- plant in the bed after the Ice Saints
- ideal growth temperatures are 20 to 24 degrees
- Growth problems arise at ten degrees
Season start
The harvest time for sweet potatoes begins in October at the earliest. From September onwards, the plants draw their energy from the leaves and store the substances in the underground tubers. If there is an excess of nutrients, the batatas develop many daughter tubers. These serve as survival organs that will sprout again next spring. It is a form of vegetative reproduction that humans use.
How to know the harvest date
When the foliage turns yellow and appears wilted, the tubers are ready to harvest. However, you should also keep an eye on the weather, as premature night frosts can also lead to discoloration of the leaves. An earlier harvest is possible, but produces lower yields with smaller sweet potatoes. Be careful when harvesting so that the thin shell is not damaged. How to reduce the risk of rot formation.
Tip
White potatoes from the garden are less sweet than supermarket vegetables. Wrap the crop in black foil and place the root vegetables in full sun during the day and in a warm room at night. This is how the starch is converted into sugar.
