Bumper sweet potato crop up north

[catjac1975]

Interesting question, cat. I always read that you must stop those rooted spots from developing, but of course, all my reading has been about growing in the north....

I don't stop them-never heard that but it makes sense. I had huge potatoes-I am just glad to keep the weeds down so that the tubers will grow well.

 

[so lucky]

The ones I noticed were more like enlargements of the root....maybe only a half inch thick, for a 2 to 3 inch length. I am supposing they would have grown if I had left them.
I noticed that I accidentally transplanted a piece of vine when I moved a tomato out of there. After watching that video, I am going to save that vine.

 

[digitS']

Oh, you guys!!

You can put sweet potato vines in your windows and set them out in your garden next year.

I want sweet potatoes!

Steve

 

[PhilaGardener]

Here is this year's sweet potato crop, dug this weekend. The blues are Japanese/Stokes Purple, the whites are O'Henry (which look a lot like conventional potatoes) and the reds are Beauregard. Really thrilled with the purple ones (it is my first year growing them).

 

[Smart Red]

Oh, yum! Those look so-o-o-o good. I love sweet potatoes, but have never tried growing them myself. After seeing the sweet potato video, I think I will give them a try.

 

[thistlebloom]

Here is this year's sweet potato crop, dug this weekend. The blues are Japanese/Stokes Purple, the whites are O'Henry (which look a lot like conventional potatoes) and the reds are Beauregard. Really thrilled with the purple ones (it is my first year growing them).

Those are beautiful PhilaGardener! I think the purples are my favorite. Are they purple all through?
What is the taste difference in the 3 types?

 

[catjac1975]

Here is this year's sweet potato crop, dug this weekend. The blues are Japanese/Stokes Purple, the whites are O'Henry (which look a lot like conventional potatoes) and the reds are Beauregard. Really thrilled with the purple ones (it is my first year growing them).

GORGEOUS!!!! I ate a white tonight for the first time. It was OK. Tell me how the purple ones taste! Is the flesh purple too? What color do they turn when cooked. I still like the taste of Beauregard the best. I have never seen purple sweets.

 

[buckabucka]

Beautiful sweets @PhilaGardener !
I miss growing purple sweet potatoes. Mine were white-fleshed, -I can't remember the variety, but they were not as productive for me. It would be fun to try some new varieties.

 

[digitS']

In Asian markets one can buy purple, sweet potato chips.

More candy-like than a savory snack.

Steve

 

[PhilaGardener]

Thanks, everyone! Last year's harvest was a bust so I think yield is more dependent on the weather than anything else, at least in a marginal growing area like PA. Always happy when things turn out well!

These purples are purple throughout and even turn a darker purple when cooked (unlike some purple vegetables). They will make a stunningly different sweet potato pie and are a rich source of dietary antioxidants.

"Stokes Purple" is a Japanese Purple Heirloom Variety (there are several) that a farmer simply patented without any claim of breeding - or even selection - he says he was gifted a few tubers by a gardener who thought he should try them. I will not say more about that, except that I feel strongly that the practice of patenting heirloom varieties is unconscionable.

I started both a traditional Japanese Purple (like this) and Stoke's Purple this Spring and grew them side by side in different rows. Although the starting material did have some differences, at the end of the season they seem indistinguishable to me (the different groups of purples in my photo are from different rows of the garden).