Your comments and tips

09 Mar 20, Garden Gnome (Australia - temperate climate)

I have had for over one year a half 200 litre plastic drum with a sweet potatoes growing in it. Just this past weekend I have dug around in the totally dry soil looking to see what was there. I did this with my hands after loosening it up with a garden fork all around the side of the drum. The leaves were not dying off in fact new shoots are forming. I only did this as we have had 1 week of dry hot weather. I harvested 3 very good sized spuds and put the rest back and topped up with well mulched soil. No extra fertilizer has been used and this is the second time I have turned this drum. As the soil lowers and parts of tubers show I top up with more well mulch soil. With watering and good old mother nature we have bought no sweet potatoes at all for quite some time. I have no idea how long they have been growing I don't garden like that.

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11 Mar 20, Tineke (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Brilliant! Mine are growing all over the place - better have a look see soon!!

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10 Mar 20, ML (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Many ways to grow things. You could have just a patch of swt potatoes and pick whenever you like. I'm growing them in my volunteer gardens. Take a slip of vine (about 40cm long), strip all the leaves off except the last 10cm of the growing tip, plant it along the ground with the tip out of the soil. Swt potatoes will grow from where the leaves were broken off. Or if you like put the slips in a bucket of water to have the slip producing roots before you plant it.

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05 Jan 20, MICHAEL PETERSON (Australia - tropical climate)

I planted sweet potato a couple of months ago and vines have started growing and no tubes, should I pull them all out and start again or is there something I can do to save them .

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06 Jan 20, anon (Australia - tropical climate)

They say about 15-17 weeks to grow. You should have some tubers developing after about 10-12 weeks. Mine are about 10 weeks old and I dug out one about 5 (?)

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24 Oct 19, anon (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

I talked to a commercial grower yesterday. Fertilise the ground before you plant. What fertiliser you use depends on how fertile your soil is. You would need a soil test to really find that out. But fertiliser with a reasonable amount of N, good P and high K. Mix this through the soil profile. If you cut off slips, make them about .4m long, strip off most of the leaves but leave the growing head part. Dig a furrow 50-75mm deep and place the slip in the furrow (place the slip level in the soil). Cover the slip over with soil but leave the growing bit sticking out of the soil. You could put the slips in a jar of water for a week or so to start the roots growing. Once you have planted the slip make sure it is watered for the next week, lIke each day. The soil around the slip has to be wet for the roots to shoot and grow. After a week or so you should notice the plant growing. The slip will produce sweet potatoes from where you stripped the leaves off giving a higher yield of crop. If the vines grow really long then I believe too high N, but I was told they need plenty of N. I was mainly asking about the placement of the slip but will ask more about the fertiliser next time.

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26 Jul 19, Laurie Whelan (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

What fertilizer should you use prior to planting?

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29 Jul 19, (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Go on the internet and find out what N P and K do for plants. Then think about what you are growing with sweet potatoes.

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04 Oct 19, Rachel Barley (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

They're ON the internet, anonymous.

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30 Jun 19, Ev (Australia - tropical climate)

I find that the purple ones grow the best in my garden. Problem is I have miles of plant and not so many tubers. Going to use some of the advice I have read on this page and feed with seaweed.

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