How To Grow Sweet Potatoes In Containers Indoors

November 15, 2024 Post a Comment

How to grow sweet potatoes in containers indoors

Harvest Time If you have managed to raise a crop of indoor sweet potatoes, they'll generally be ready about 90 to 120 days after you plant the slips. If possible, move your container outside to harvest.

Do sweet potatoes grow well in pots?

Potted sweet potatoes will do well with high-quality potting soil amended with compost and sand to help keep the soil light and airy. This allows the potato tubers to grow to an ideal size. Using the correct container will keep the soil mix from becoming too dry or too wet.

How big of a container do I need to grow sweet potatoes?

For planting sweet potatoes, use the largest possible pot with drainage holes. Sweet potatoes grow down deep in soil, so your container should be at least 12” deep and 2 feet across per plant. Any smaller than these dimensions and you will end up with smaller sized yields.

Can I just plant a whole sweet potato?

Unlike regular potatoes, you can't just plant a whole sweet potato in the ground and expect a crop; it will rot underground. Sweet potatoes are grown from sweet potato slips. Slips are the stems and foliage that sprout from already grown sweet potatoes. Twist them off the potato, root them in water, then plant them.

Should I trim my sweet potato vines?

The long vines of sweet potatoes can overrun a garden. In early to mid-September, feel free to cut them back by 25%. This simply makes the plants easier to deal with when digging. Sweet potatoes with edible tubers developing below the ground.

Do sweet potato plants need to climb?

Sweet potato vines aren't vivacious climbers, preferring instead to crawl along the ground. As they crawl, the vines set down roots along the length of the stem. Where these vines root in the ground, you'll find sweet potato tubers in the fall.

Do sweet potatoes need full sun or shade?

Ridging also makes harvesting easier. Sweet potatoes grow best in light, sandy soils but grow well on heavier soils, high in clay and amended with organic matter. Full sun requires direct light at least 6 hours/day; prefers 8 - 10 hours/day. Days to maturity: 85 - 120.

What is the best potting mix for sweet potatoes?

Using a container mix amended with compost, sand and a fertilizer high in potash is ideal. Place about four inches of soil in your container, then place the sweet potato slips on top and then add about three more inches of soil to secure them.

How often do you water sweet potatoes in pots?

Put the sweet potato in the jar and wait for 3-4 weeks. Sweet potatoes need heat to grow, so if it's too cold outside, keep the potato indoors. 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.

How many potatoes can you grow in a 5 gallon container?

You can plant five seed potatoes into a 10-gallon bucket and about three into a 7-gallon. If you've only got 5-gallon buckets, plan on using only two potatoes. Expect a 5-gallon bucket to yield a couple of pounds of potatoes. So if you're feeding a family or just love potatoes, do more containers or bigger ones.

Can I grow sweet potatoes from a whole sweet potato?

If you have a sweet potato sprouting in the cupboard, it might be too far gone for dinner. However, if you plant the sprouting section, called a slip, you can grow your own sweet potatoes in just a few months time. Store-bought sweet potatoes work perfectly well and growing them is simple.

Do sweet potatoes need a trellis?

If space is an issue, consider growing vines vertically up a trellis to allow sunlight to reach the leaves and produce larger sweet potatoes. Check longer vines occasionally and lift them up to keep them from rooting in the soil along the vines.

What month do you plant sweet potatoes?

The best time to plant sweet potato plants is after the ground is thawed and after the last spring frost date has passed. If the ground doesn't freeze in your location, then the best time to plant is usually a month after your last spring frost date.

Should I soak sweet potatoes before planting?

Start 6–8 weeks before planting time. Soak the sweet potatoes in water for 2 hours. Then either suspend the tubers with toothpicks half-immersed in a jar of water (stem end up) OR place them in a flat or pot half filled with potting soil or screened compost. Cover with 2 inches of loose soil.

Can I plant a sweet potato from the grocery store?

You can start your own slips, sprouts from an existing sweet potato, by purchasing “seed” sweet potatoes from a nursery; or you can start slips from tubers purchased from the grocery store. Some sweet potatoes may be sprayed to inhibit sprouting, so be careful to choose organic tubers.

Do sweet potato vines come back every year?

Ornamental sweet potato vines will come back every year if you live in a warm enough climate (zones 9+). However, they will not survive outside through the winter in colder climates.

How do you care for a potted sweet potato vine?

The care of sweet potato plants is similar to most other vining houseplants in the home, spending summers outdoors. While tolerant of drought, these plants prefer to be kept moist (not soggy). Though prolific growers, you may fertilize monthly, if desired, using a general all-purpose, water soluble fertilizer.

How do I make my sweet potato vine bushy?

If the sweet potato vine gets too long, cut it back a few inches to force the vine to get bushier. The tip of the vine that was pinched off can be rooted in water or moist soil. Your sweet potato vines can be planted outside in late May to produce sweet potatoes that can be dug and eaten in the fall.

How cold is too cold for sweet potato plants?

Sweet potato roots continue to grow until frost kills the vines. Roots can be left in the ground for a short while; however, a hard frost can cause damage to roots near the surface. Chilling injury also results to roots when soil temperatures drop to 50°F or lower, and this can result in internal decay in storage.

How deep should soil be for sweet potatoes?

Sweet potatoes mature in 90 to 170 days and they're extremely frost sensitive. Plant in full sun three to four weeks after the last frost when the soil has warmed. Make holes 6 inches deep and 12 inches apart. Bury slips up to the top leaves, press the soil down gently but firmly, and water well.