Growing sweet potatoes in Florida is as simple as placing a sweet potato in the dirt and watching it grow. I planted one store-bought sweet potato two years ago and I now have many square feet of groundcover and plenty of sweet potatoes underneath. Read on to learn more about creating your own sweet potato slips.
| Sweet potato | Ipomoea batatas |
| Season (FL) | Spring, Summer |
| Soil type | Sandy, well draining |
| Light | Full sun to partial shade |
| Water | Moderate |
| Mature plant size | Spreading |
| Harvest in | 16-18 weeks |
Growing sweet potatoes in Florida
Sweet potatoes are an easy crop to grow in Florida’s summer heat. Sweet potatoes should be a staple crop, one to always keep around, for their caloric density and ease of growing. Not to mention, their attractive trailing vines.
Sweet potato vines make an excellent ground cover to shade and protect the soil basically year-round. An added perk – those leaves are edible and can be snacked on in the meantime.
Grown best in full sun and poor soil, this is a crop to keep around each year.
Recommended varieties for Florida
Try any organic sweet potato in the grocery store for a variety of flavors and colors. According to IFAS, these are the recommended varieties for Florida.
- Centennial
- Beauregard
- Vardaman – a bush type, suitable for smaller gardens
When to plant sweet potatoes in Florida
Sweet potatoes are best planted in spring through June. In my experience, and for the most part in Florida, sweet potatoes will grow whenever. You’ll get the best crop by waiting for the last frost to pass, and growing in the warmest months.
For best results, think of it this way. It takes 4 to 6 weeks for slips to form from a store-bought sweet potato. For slips to form sizable tubers takes 4 to 6 months. Therefore you would want to plant your slips by July so their growth period isn’t inhibited by winter frost.
While sweet potatoes will grow year round, you’ll get the tastiest crop by digging them all up and starting fresh each spring.
What you’ll need
Sweet potatoes can be grown from a store-bought (organic) sweet potato or from slips (cuttings with roots). Buy a sweet potato from your local farmer’s market or grocery store and it should eventually start sprouting in your kitchen. This is why it must be organic – the inorganic types are generally sprayed with sprout inhibitors. I recommend using this first sweet potato to create slips, rather than growing the rest of your sweet potatoes from this one, which could result in a smaller harvest.
Create your own sweet potato slips
You can also create or purchase slips – baby plants that sprout from a mature sweet potato.
To create your own, wait until any threat of frost has passed. Bury that store-bought sweet potato sideways in the ground, with half of it below the soil and the top half exposed. Within a few weeks you should see sprouts emerging from it. When the small vines are about 6 inches long, break them off as close to the potato as possible. This initial potato should give you 10 to 25 slips before it rots away.
The slips with roots can be planted in the garden right away. Those without roots – place them in water in indirect sunlight for a few days. Once they have a few white roots they’re ready to plant.
How to plant sweet potatoes
Choose a spot in full sun to semi-shade. Use your finger or a screwdriver to make a hole 3 or more inches deep and poke the slips down into the hole. Lay them on their side if they’re too long.
Water plenty after planting. Once they’re established, or once the rainy season is in full swing they should not need much water at all. You can mostly ignore them all summer, although it’s good to layer on grass clippings or leaf litter since the soil may tend to sink as they grow.
If starting your crop in the winter, a wise option is to start your sweet potato in a pot indoors, and transfer slips outside when it warms it.
Growing sweet potatoes in containers
Sweet potatoes make an excellent container plant. Their showy vines will liven up a bright windowsill. Did you know the leaves are edible too? A great addition to your kitchen garden.
3 tips on caring for your sweet potatoes
- Use vine cuttings to propagate, allowing the sweet potatoes underground to continue growing.
- Minimal water is required once they’ve been established – especially in rainy Florida summers.
- Check often for pests and disease, and remove manually before things get out of hand. Some pest damage on leaves is normal, and shouldn’t affect the potatoes underground.
Harvesting sweet potatoes
While it takes at least 4 months for mature sweet potatoes to develop, any time after that is a good time to harvest. Look for mounding or follow the vines with your fingers to find the largest potatoes. Pick as needed and allow the tubers to continue spreading.
Once harvested, place the potatoes in a dark area (a garage or shed) for a couple weeks so they can cure. They need warmth and humidity for the curing process, which will increase their sweetness. If they’re not in a dark location, they’ll begin sprouting again. They can last up to 9 months from harvest in their curing state.
The leaves are also edible, so cut off leaves as needed and add to any sauteed dish.
Suggested recipe for sweet potatoes
Boiled, steamed, mashed and fried, just like ‘regular’ potatoes. Sweet potato fries anyone?
Sources
https://www.tropicalpermaculture.com/growing-sweet-potatoes.html
https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/plants/edibles/vegetables/sweet-potatoes.html