preparation
Careful planning is necessary so that your sweet potato develops the beautiful long shoots that ostensibly trigger their appeal. Note the dimensions the plant takes. If you want to plant your sweet potato on the edge of your property, you should make sure beforehand that the plant does not sprawl over to the neighbors. In addition, you have to decide between a pot or outdoor culture. Ultimately, the question arises as to whether you are already buying a finished specimen from the nursery or whether you are daring the somewhat laborious variant of growing with seed tubers. The middle ground is the cultivation from a tuber from the supermarket or an offshoot. However, the latter requires the presence of a plant from which you take the cutting. Sweet potatoes sprout in light locations either in the substrate or in a water bath after just a few days.
also read
- Interesting facts about the sweet potato harvest
- Freeze the sweet potato
- Freeze the sweet potato
The choice of location
The sweet potato comes from the tropics and therefore loves sunny, warm locations. A partially shaded place is also conceivable, but not ideal. Balconies, terraces or flower beds facing south, on the other hand, are perfect.
Tips
A greenhouse also provides sufficient warmth. Alternatively, a fleece is recommended, which at the same time offers the advantage of getting the plant used to the intense sunlight. This is necessary at the beginning, especially with young plants.
Demands on the soil
With regard to the soil conditions, the potato requires a very nutrient-rich substrate. You can create the best conditions by working some compost into the soil before planting. In addition, sandy soil is recommended, which should definitely be well-drained to prevent waterlogging. Keeping your sweet potato in the bucket is conventional Potting soil perfectly adequate.
The right time
Do not put your sweet potatoes - whether young plants or home-grown cuttings - outside before the night frosts have subsided. At sub-zero temperatures, growth stagnates or, in the worst case, the potato dies. The time after the ice saints in mid-May is used as an orientation. By the way: you should start growing cuttings as early as January.
Planting partner
The faster the potato forms roots, the slower it will grow in the ground in the first few months. To bridge this time and to beautify the bare bed, a mixed culture is suitable. To do this, choose vegetable varieties that you can harvest after a short time, for example
- salad
- radish
- or spinach
At the same time, the roots of these transitional plants protect against soil erosion.
Planting instructions
Have you cleared the bed of weeds and roots? Then it can go. How to Plant a Sweet Potato:
- loosen the earth well
- if necessary, remove the young plant from the nursery pot and free the ball of excess soil
- Fill earth dams 20 cm high and 60 cm wide with a minimum distance of one meter
- place the sweet potato in the ground at a distance of at least 30 cm
Info: The dam method has proven itself particularly useful when planting sweet potatoes. On the one hand, you reduce the risk of waterlogging and, on the other hand, the heaped earth warms up faster.
Alternatives to planting in the bed and creative design options
Sweet potatoes not only produce edible tubers, but also beautify your garden with great flowers and long shoots. Here are some ideas for garden design:
- in the hanging basket
- as a tendril on walls, walls or railings
- in the raised bed
- for loading old caravans, car tires, ect.
- as a privacy screen
