Sweet potato plants question

larry@stinescorner · May 3, 2015

got them in the mail,and its a bit too early to plant them in PA,,,I took the out of the shipping box,they look great,,,they are wrapped at the bottom with moist paper,,,can I keep them moist in a pail for about two weeks? I did plant some in nj today,but I can cover them,,would like to plsnt them later in PA if they will hold,,,,any advice???/,,last year was my first time planting sweet potatoes,they did well in nj,,,But I was sick at planting time so didnt plant the big garden pa

keh · May 3, 2015

Sweet potatoes don't like below 55 degrees. Best procedure is to put them in dirt in a container that can be put inside at night to keep warm.

KEH

jacks · May 3, 2015

Larry,

You could also get some plug trays and potting soil, and and plant them in the tray. They will root quickly and will take off more quickly when you plant them. The slips are tough and will withstand some stress. The slips that are stored too long and kept damp can start to rot. I start my slips in plug trays and plant them with a mechanical transplanter. Good luck, and make sure to wait until cool weather is past.

JD Seller · May 3, 2015

Dixie cups are your friend here. LOL Take your plants and some good potting soil. Plant them in the cups inside where they are warm and sunny. You can water them easily and rotate them if they start to grow towards the light. They will easily transplant out of the cups with a good root system. Leaving them in water for a week or so will rot the roots.

tomturkey · May 3, 2015

I don't know about your starts, this is what my wife does. She takes a sweet potatoe from last year, suspends one end in water in a canning jar. When a sprout comes on the other end she waits til it gets about two inches tall, then transfers it to a small glass container with water. The sprout will develop roots in the jar. typically they will grow to be 3-4 inches tall. Once its warm enough, plant them in the garden. Been doing it that way for thirty years. So maybe you could put them in a glass of water and grow or hold them until temps are warm enough. Of course you can always put them in peat pots or such with soil and hold them til temps are right. gobble

gbs · May 4, 2015

if it's warm enough where you are now to have already set some out,make a furrow in the edge of the place where you set the others about 8"deep, lay the plants upright along one edge of the furrow no more than a inch thick until you have them all in the furrow then cover about half way up the plants then push the opposite side to the plants a little to straighten them up they will be covered with new roots in 2 weeks and ready to set out,that's the way the old timers use to keep them if they had extra plants until they could set them,of course they usually had a bushel basket or two the hold like this.

Cory Schmidt · May 4, 2015

Small container(think whipped topping size) of water maybe a dash of fertilizer to hold, don't really need soil. Check, add, and change water as needed. That's how we held them over when we got them in to sell. Should last that couple weeks, too a month or two.

Sweet potato plants question

larry@stinescorner

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keh

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jacks

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JD Seller

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tomturkey

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gbs

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Cory Schmidt

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