Steele has worked well with growers around here. Hopefully you'll have the same results.

Strange - I swear I posted to this thread last night. We've used Steele for years and never been disappointed. Nice plants and very healthy. You'll be happy with them.

Tom

Good. I was surprised how much cheaper they were than New Hope and that worked out well for me! I have spent so much this spring on garden stuff and just on stuff in 'regular life' so to speak. Hub lost 75 pounds on Medifast since 1/3/13 and that has meant Medifast bills, grocery bills (all fresh veggies) and a new wardrobe including suits. Auto repair and house appliance repair etc. Now I will sell the extra 100 sweet potatoes and leeks I got in bulk to local folk on Craig's List. I needed around 375-400 sweet potatoes but they only come in 100 and 500 breaks.
What I hate is that in MN you get your stuff last and that means you get the crap at the end.

Congrats on his weight loss.

If you have space and facilities, you might be able to contact the growers and state that you need them earlier in the season. I know it happens with strawberry plants. Of course, you take a bigger risk of freezing during delivery.

Just a thought.

Haven't found a decent supplier of slips in Canada (and I'm unable to import from the U.S), so I start them all myself. It's pretty time consuming.
Do you have any tips on growing them in a cool zone? I plant them into black plastic and put row covers and plastic over them. The results are OK but not great. I don't suppose there's much more I can do?

That is what I do too. I guess the only option would be a low or high tunnel. My sandy soil warms quickly so that helps me out with my short (super short this year) season.

When I have my own farm with more space and facilities I will start my own.

So they sent my plants way too early. I am pissed. They came yesterday. I think they wanted to send them before the holiday but I am totally not ready to plant them and didn't want to plant them until the other stuff was done! I am hoping they will look good still on Monday or Tuesday but the weather here is not warm at all!

I don't plant many, but sometimes mine get kept in a "vase" for a month or so. It doesn't seem to hurt them any.

You can 'bed' them in also. Basically just planting them tightly together in a bed. Around here, you can bury a heat cable in a sand box, then plant the bunches as bunches. Keep well watered and they will keep for a few weeks.

I've held them without anything, except misting once or twice a week for a couple of weeks.

I would not worry too much about waiting until the first of the week - I've been trying to get our in for a week now but no joy. The slips are pretty resilient - they may loose their leaves and get a little nasty looking but will still take off once planted.

Tom

there are too many sweet potatoes here in North Carolina so much excess on the commercial level they are being made into vodka.

yup you heard me right vodka made right here in north Carolina, usa