True, also, heat is key. If it is at all cool, they can take a LONG time to get going. I suppose variety is also a factor. I had an infestation of fungus gnats, in my planter, this year, and had to start over twice, toughest sweet potato year of my life, so far. One suggestion for the future: take it for what it's worth to you. Don't cut the roots you want to use for starting slips. This may give opportunity for disease or ... fungus gnats. Just bury the root at least half way in the soil. It'll work. Grandad, they are incredibly hardy, aren't they?! We lived over eight years in the high desert of the Mexican state of Hidalgo. There was very little rainfall where we lived. But we did use flood irrigation. I once pulled a sweet potato vine, while harvesting, and tossed it into an adjacent (unused/dry) plot. Over the course of a couple months the vine dried, turned brown crisp. Then, someone flooded that plot, in order to work it, and... presto! The vine sprouted little sweet potato plants along the leaf nodes! George

They were started in the house. I kept back some of the best looking sweet potatoes from the most productive hills last fall. I kept them as close to the optimal temps as possible. By spring, the start to sprout on their own. Around early to mid April, I put a layer of potatoes in the bottom of these tubs, then I cover with potting mix and dump a 1/2 gallon of warm water all over to wet the mix and set them in a warm place, my germination chamber, or near to it. They start to sprout and push up more and more. When the temps even out, I take them out to the hoop building to grow, get more sun and sprout more. I just keep the mix moist. This week the temps are in the mid 80s for highs and 60's for lows. No holes in the bottom of the tub. I am just careful with water and I have never had any rot before. It is really simple. I also sell the slips at my market booth. I usually just take the slips, root them and put them in another tub or just take that whole tub. When someone buys some, either pull them up or pull out of the ground, put in a moist paper towel and put the towel and root ends into a plastic bag to stay moist. I will have 4 varieties to grow and for sale this year. Jay

Need pictures please

I have grown sweet potatoes as a ground cover underneath pepper plants, roselle, lion's tail and something else that I no longer remember, but I know it wasn't root crops because, like Amy, I think the sweet potatoes would compete with other root crops. I like Amy's suggestion that you plant them somewhat near the onion bed---maybe on its perimeter and let the plants vine into the onion area only after the onions have been harvested. Onions do not particularly like sharing space, so letting the vines run too rampantly into the onion area might result in you getting smaller onions that you otherwise would. I think onions would be particularly unhappy about sharing space with a root crop, whereas they might not mind sharing space with a non-root crop, depending on the spacing used.