Sweet Potatoes

[rockytopsis]

When to harvest? I planted them May 5th and they look great but not sure when to harvest them.

Thanks
Nancy

 

[Ridgerunner]

Sweet potatoes don't give good clues like the other potatoes. The vines can keep growing until frost. Some people will say when they start to turn yellow, but my vines don't usually do that.

You can get different opinions of when they taste best. I like to leave them until fairly late, but some may like the flavor and texture better if they get then young. I'm pretty sure they store better if they are older. They start setting potatoes when you see those purplish flowers, so they will have some potatoes sometime after that.

You want to dig them before your first frost. If the vine gets frost-bitten, the potatoes will begin to rot real soon. If they get frosted on, you need to immediately cut the vine off and dig them within a couple of days. Frost or freezing is a real enemy with sweet potatoes.

In Tennessee, I'd guess sometime in September might be a good time.

 

[retiredwith4acres]

We dig the day before the first frost is predicted or immediately right after. Makes it easier to store in the ground than anywhere else so helps to leave them as long as possible. Leaving them there that long last year and they were still very small. SO, weather will make a huge difference in size and flavor of sweet potatoes. This very hot weather we are having right now is very good for sweet potatoes. Just have to keep them watered. Don't be in a hurry to dig, you will be glad of it. They are slow growers!

 

[catjac1975]

My sweets are listed as a 90 day variety. Southern varieties are listed at 100 to 110 days. I would use that as a guideline according to your variety. Mine do not turn yellow. I don't know if you can leave them in the garden and use them as you need them in your location.Dig one up and see what you have. My experience is that they like a lot of water.

When to harvest? I planted them May 5th and they look great but not sure when to harvest them.

Thanks
Nancy

 

[baymule]

Great information! I planted mine in the first of June and now I know to wait until I see little flowers like new potatoes do! Whoo-Hoo! This is my first time to plant sweet potatoes!

 

[catjac1975]

So I am in zone 6 and dug my first sweet potatoes today. I am close to 90 days after planting-the listed time frame for my SP. There were 3 good sized potatoes and several small ones. I leave them in the ground and only dig what I am eating that day. They are not fully grown yet, but I will continue to harvest as needed. Last year I harvested much later, shared with a couple of neighbors and still did not use all the potatoes from 100 slips. I have no luck storing them, though I have read in a thread that some of you have no trouble at all. I will try again though it seems to be a regional thing.

 

[catjac1975]

I forgot to mention the most important thing in order to tell if your sweets are ready. The soil forms a hill around the base of the plant. That is the enlarged potatoes beneath the surface.

 

[so lucky]

I forgot to mention the most important thing in order to tell if your sweets are ready. The soil forms a hill around the base of the plant. That is the enlarged potatoes beneath the surface.

Ooh ooh! That means the sweet potato plant I put out 3 weeks ago is ready already. Oh wait, it's a mole run. :/

 

[catjac1975]

You need a cat! Wait! you put out a SP 3 weeks ago? Is that usual for your climate???

I forgot to mention the most important thing in order to tell if your sweets are ready. The soil forms a hill around the base of the plant. That is the enlarged potatoes beneath the surface.

Ooh ooh! That means the sweet potato plant I put out 3 weeks ago is ready already. Oh wait, it's a mole run. :/

 

[so lucky]

You need a cat! Wait! you put out a SP 3 weeks ago? Is that usual for your climate???

I forgot to mention the most important thing in order to tell if your sweets are ready. The soil forms a hill around the base of the plant. That is the enlarged potatoes beneath the surface.

Ooh ooh! That means the sweet potato plant I put out 3 weeks ago is ready already. Oh wait, it's a mole run. :/

No, it's late. I just grew a couple slips from a purchased sweet potato and thought : "Hey! I think I'll plant these!"