Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Grown sweet potatoes on a pole?

nafex@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: road's end farm <organic101@linkny.com>
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Grown sweet potatoes on a pole?
  • Date: Mon, 1 Aug 2005 08:38:01 -0400


On Jul 31, 2005, at 9:32 PM, athagan@atlantic.net wrote:

I've had rabbits eat my sweet potato vines from time to time, but
they've never managed to do any significant damage once they really
take off when the weather turns hot.

I've had deer take all the leaves off. Now that did do damage to the crop.

Scattering a little bloodmeal (or something else deer don't like the taste of) over the leaves helps.

If you're going to be growing these things in New England it would
seem to me that growing season is going to be your biggest concern as
sweet potatoes are tropical in nature. They don't like cool weather
much and a light frost will kill the vines dead. There are several
varieties reputed to produce good tubers in ninety days.

Planting in plastic mulch (to warm the soil early in the season) also helps in the North.

Steele Plant Co. in Tennessee carries a nice selection of plants. May
be a bit too late in the season for you by now though.

Much too late. Here they need to go in by early June. You might get away with putting them in a bit earlier under row covers.

I don't know anything about growing them up a pole, though. They do need a lot of room, sprawled all over the ground.

--Rivka
Finger Lakes NY; zone 5 mostly





Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page