Can I use a store-bought sweet potato?
kvbch
16 years ago
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denninmi
16 years agoRelated Discussions
planting store bought potatoes next to cert. seed potato
Comments (1)Don't worry about it. Your potatoes will *all* be diseased by the end of the season. It increases each year causing production to drop drastically. But it won't just come from other seed potatoes, it's all around. Your certified potatoes will get infected regardless. What I don't know is how fast the virus takes off and how much productivity you lose after each season of non-sterile seeds. Obviously, it's not bad during the first season. How bad after the second generation? Third? Fourth? I'd like to not buy seed potatoes every year. Maybe every other year would be good enough, but I guess I won't know 'til I try....See MoreDoes anyone save/store ornamental sweet potatoes?
Comments (6)I think I have tried every way possible and haven't had much luck except this year. While digging up a companion plant to save last fall I dug up a pencil size sm root of my potato plant and so I just potted it up. It took awhile (untill christmas) but I have sm lime green leaves now. I'll try it next year too but root cuttings does seem to work. If I had been smarter last year I would have put in more roots but...I'll have to try that next year. I find that I am using these more and more every year so it will be worth it for me....See MoreStoring sweet potatoes
Comments (2)Christie, Sweet potatoes need to be "cured" before they are stored. We used to wait until the first frost blackened the vines, then dig them and cure them behind our wood stove. They need to be cured at 75-80 degrees fahrenheit and about 70-80% humidity until the skins thicken--about a week, best I remember. So we would place pans of water near them. Then they can be stored under a bed in a cool room and will last for months. My aunt used to store hers in her unheated attic bedroom near the woodstove chimney for a little warmth. Sweet potatoes are not planted from eyes like Irish potatoes, but from "slips". The easiest way to start them is to pick a few large potatoes (One tuber will make several "slips"--maybe as many as ten, place them in a tray deep enough to cover them with sand two to three inches over the tops, water them and place them in a warm room. Keep the sand moist but not soggy. Do this about 6-8 weeks before planting time. When the slips emerge, move them to bright light. Plant no sooner than three weeks after the last frost--the ground has to be warm. The slips should be 8-10" long with roots below the sand. Carefully pull the slips off of the mother tuber and separate them. Remove all the leaves except those on the top 3" of the sprout PLant the slips 2 feet apart with only 3" of the tops above ground as they will root along their length. Give them plenty of room. The old fashioned ones can extend 15 feet in every direction if watered well. We have dug potatoes as big as 5 pounds from our beds--they were still good too, not woody or pithy. Let me know if you do this, not many people grow their own any more including us. When I was feeding four kiddos, it was worth it, but for just two of us, not so much....See More? storing sweet potatoes/yams
Comments (4)Aldi had them last week for 29-cents a pound, so I stocked-up. Sweet potatoes require cool storage (55-60-degrees F), but a refrigerator is too cool for long storage. For immediate use, I place them in a large paper bag with air-vents cut into the bag for air circulation, and store them in a dark, cool place in the basement for one - two months. I'd suggest cooking/freezing them in slices and vacuum-sealing them with a FoodSaver. I also cook and mash them and spread a thin layer on fruit roll-up sheets and dehydrate them. As soon as they are set on the sheets enough to remove from the sheets, I put them on the dehydrator trays and continue to dry them until they are crisp dry. At that point I pulverize them into a powder and store it in a canning jar. To rehydrate them for "instant" mashed sweet potatoes, add enough hot water to make it the consistency you want. -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: freezing sweet potatoes...See Morebcomplx
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