Gardening: Planting Sweet Potatoes

Love Sweet Potatoes? Let’s Plant some!

Most plants you transplant into a garden come potted in a small amount of dirt with already established roots. Sweet potato plants are most often bareroot plants, also known as slips, received in bundles or propogated from a full grown sweet potato then rooted in water.

Sweet Potato Planting Step-by-Step

1. Planting bareroot plants can be some what intimidating as the root system is a bit more fragile than plants with well established root systems. Sweet Potatoes although bareroot can be very easy to plant.
2. In our community garden we cultivate the soil which we have already enriched with organic fertilizers into beds or raised rows.
3. Once the beds are established we lay individual plants across each bed about 6 – 8 inches apart.
4. After all plants are even distributed we take a wooden pole and push the plant in to the soil just above the root portion until it stands up straight.
5. If necessary pull more dirt around the plant to provide additional support.
6. Once all plants are inserted into the soil, water all of the plants. Water daily or as needed depending on the rainfall and weather conditions in your area.
7. Your sweet potatoes should be ready for harvest in late September or early October.

Note: Be sure to harvest before the first frost in your area as sweet potatoes can become frostbitten if left in the ground after freezing temperatures begin in your area.

Difficulty: Very Easy
This video demonstrates how to easily plant sweet potatoes.

– The Projects Chick – Vicki McGill