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permaculture - Re: Sweet potatoes as leafy forage?

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  • From: Keith Johnson <keithdj@sonic.net>
  • To: permaculture@listserv.oit.unc.edu
  • Subject: Re: Sweet potatoes as leafy forage?
  • Date: Tue, 30 Dec 1997 12:56:12 -0800

YankeePerm wrote:
>
> Ok, I was digging sweet potatoes (Ipomea batcas) yesterday and looking at
> the
> zillions of little roots that never got big in amongst the hand-fillers and
> thinking, there is a use for these.
>
> However it occurs to me that I can place the little tubers under mulch in
> the
> pasture, which is often wet, and grow the leaves as forage for my steer
> I'm not sure how much
> forage the tubers will stand. I'm also not sure if I allow them to
> "perennialize" if I will be breeding the little root borers that ruin sweet
> potatoes when grown repeatedly from roots (vs "slips")
> Does anyone have any experience using sweet potato LEAVES as forage? How
> about water spinach? (either I reptans or I aquatica)
>
> The present sweet potatoes are part of a year long cycle I use here for
> bringing land into cultivation.
>
> So, now I want to hear from folks who can tell me about sweet potato as
> forage.


Dan,
Since we and the deer both like to eat the leaves of sweet potato, I bet
the steer and H2O buffalo would love it. Likewise the water spinach. How
much browsing they can tolerate, I don't know. Keep us up to date with
your experiment. Thanks.--
Keith
keithdj@sonic.net





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