Potatoes are really easy to grow and require no complicated plant supports and they make the perfect crop for beginner gardeners.
Potatoes can be stored for months too. They are one of the more versatile in the garden, and you don't need to harvest them immediately. Potatoes easily grow in a home garden and one plant will usually produce an abundant harvest.
Easily Grow Sweet Potatoes at Home
Sweet potatoes are a popular vegetable that is rich in nutrients and vitamins. You can grow sweet potatoes at home by following these easy steps.
Sweet potatoes grow just like normal potatoes, but they need more sunlight and space. Set up your sweet potato plants in a location where they get plenty of light (6+ hours per day) for prime yields.
You can grow potatoes in standard ground soil, in buckets, stacks of tires, or other plant containers. You need to ensure that the container can hold soil and is at least a foot deep.
When you buy certain varieties of produce at the store, it can come with growth retardant to prevent sprouting. If you want to try those produce varieties, be sure they are organic since this type of produce is typically not treated with growth retardant.
How to Cut and Prepare Sweet Potatoes for Sowing
Seed potatoes should always be cut and dried before planting to provide the best results. Larger tubers can be cut into 3-4 pieces, making sure each piece has at least 1 sprout.
Place cut pieces in a single layer in the sun for them to cure. If that doesn’t work, you can keep them on paper towels on your kitchen countertop for a few days. The edges of a tuber might dry out and form a callus during the curing process. The callus will protect the tuber from rotting once you plant it into the soil.
Potatoes grow best in loose and well-draining soil. It's important to add 50% compost to the soil, which provides drainage, and nutrition and prevents the soil from getting compacted when planting potatoes.
Potatoes grow best in cool weather, so when planting them make sure to do so during cooler days. Simply dig a 6-inch deep hole and place one cut seed potato in the bottom (eyes facing upward). Cover the hole and pat down to gently pack it with dirt.
Cover those potatoes at the top with extra soil to protect them from sunlight and becoming green. If you ever noticed green potatoes, that’s because they broke through – exposing themselves to sunlight – and are no longer edible.
How to Harvest Sweet Potatoes
Ideally, you'll want to harvest potatoes when they are small because they don't keep well after harvesting. As the plants start to die off, this is a good sign that the mature potatoes in the soil will also be ready to be dug up.
#1: Harvesting potatoes involves digging up the entire plant.
#2: It is important to harvest sweet potatoes when they are ripe because they spoil quickly.
#3: When harvesting potatoes, it is best to use a spade or shovel.
How to Store Sweet Potatoes for the Winter
It is important to store sweet potatoes in the right way so that they will be healthy and fresh for winter.
For long-term storage, potatoes need to be cured. This requires a few weeks in a dark environment with a moderate temperature (around 18 degrees Celsius), and higher humidity if possible.
Curing the potatoes until they turn into dark-looking skins will make them keep for a longer time in storage. Once you do this, you can store them for weeks in wet, dark environments that are at the same temperature as your fridge.
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