A large sweet potato surprise unearthed in this harvest series.
Tropical Storm Eta made the final call. In the midst of heavy rain and strong winds over the past several days, the sweet potato vines collapsed. Or, should I say that the garden twine supporting the vines finally broke. Either way, I moved forward to harvest the potatoes roughly 90 days after planting. I could have waited until December, but I have been anxious to clear this bed for planting green leafy vegetables like collards or kale that perform well during our cool, dry winter season here in South Florida. I also plan to sow a new sweet potato crop in a different planting bed for beneficial crop rotation.
From start to finish, the sweet potatoes were painless to harvest. I originally planted 3 sweet potatoes in the soil that sprouted in my kitchen cabinet. From those starter potatoes I harvested a rather low yield--9 large-sized potatoes (sizes easily rivaling store-bought ones). I attribute this to the fact that I planted potatoes instead of slips. I also encountered a few tiny potatoes that were not worth eating but will be transplanted into the ground in the next planting bed.
After gently washing each potato and letting them air dry, I placed them in a paper bag to be stored in the pantry for 10-14 days to cure. I am already imagining how I will be preparing my sweet treats in the next two weeks.
Save the vines and root them for the next crop.
After I finished preparing my potatoes for curing, I cut the vines into 6-inch stems, removed several of the leaves and then placed them in water. I have found that these cuttings root amazingly fast--root growth appearing in roughly 2-3 days. After 7 or more days, they are ready to be planted directly into the soil. Learn how to plant sprouted potatoes and slips.
This plant just keeps on giving and giving. By far, it has been the easiest crop to grow in my garden. I look forward to adding Seminole pumpkin and Malabar spinach to my vine-based food crops in the spring of 2021.
Watch me harvest my first potato in this video.
Harvest Photos
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