Poor sweet potato! It has a serious naming problem. Not only does it get stuck with the name of some OTHER tuber that's not even remotely related either botanically or taste-wise (I too have tasted "real" yams, and they're not much like sweet potatoes at all)... ...but they also got their "proper" name STOLEN by a certain tuberous nightshade plant! I heard that the word "potato" originally referred to Ipomea batatas, then was later used used as a more general term for root or tuber vegetables, and then later somehow got stuck on Solanum tuberosa, so that people felt that the original potato had to now carry the qualifier "sweet", even though not all varieties of Ipomea batatas are sweet. Though I guess it's bad enough calling the other potatoes "Irish potatoes", when they're from South America, or calling them "white potatoes" when not all of them are white and some sweet potatoes are white. Basically... we need better words for things. :-P

George, When I posted the link, I knew it might not be the exact same tool you were talking about, because Johnny's has so many terrific hand tools. But, I figured if I got the link started, everyone could go from page to page in Johnny's website and check out all his great handtools. Dorothy, I, too, have found that you get what you pay for with gardening tools. I normally will spend a lot of money for one very well-made, very heavy duty fork or spade or whatever. Then, of course, I expect it to last many years. One of my fave tool companies is Lee Valley Tools. Their prices are shocking, but their quality is outstanding. I also like to buy Sears Craftsman tools that have the lifetime guarantee. I have a shovel, a spade and a fork from Sears that have fiberglass handles and lifetime guarantees and they do replace them if they break. I have noticed, though, these last few years that Sears is also selling tools that are not Craftsman and don't have the guarantee, so you do have to be sure to get the right one. I also love my black, heavy-duty Craftsman water hoses. They, too, cost a lot but also have a lifetime guarantee. Sears cheerfully replaces them if anything happens to them. In the 10 years we've been here, we've only had to have a hose replaced once.....I think somebody's husband (and I am not pointing fingers) might have run over the hose with the lawnmower and sliced it almost in half. If that's not how it happened, then I don't even know how the hose was cut, but they replaced it. Irrigation is a killer and soaker hoses are a lifesaver. If you garden in containers, you can use a drip irrigation system with the drip line running from container to container. I even use a drip line with the hanging baskets on my wraparound porch and it eliminates the problem of having water stream from the baskets down onto the porch below since the drip is so slow that the water absorbs into the soil instead of running off. In a bad (dry) year like last summer, there generally comes a point where I have to stop watering everything except the foundation area around the house and barn/garage (to keep the soil and foundation from cracking). We've never had water rationing in the 10 years we've been here, but I have to ration it myself because it costs so much. Beth, It doesn't matter to me where garden tools come from. If your soil is soft and friable enough that you don't have to have heavy-duty tools that won't break, then the dollar store tools are fine. I always have several, because I am bad about leaving them lying around in the garden. And, that reminds me, if you spray all your garden tool handles a really bright color like fluorescent pink or orange, they'll be easier to find when you do leave them laying around. I always watch for "clearance" sales on gardening supplies, which usually start appearing in mid-summer so they can clear out the garden tools at big discount stores and start putting in school supplies in late June or early July. I also shop online for bargains. About a month ago, I found leather Wells-Lamont gloves online for less than $3.00 a pair, so I bought about 2 dozen pair. Because they were irregulars, they weren't stamped with the Wells-Lamont logo, but they are well-made and I was excited to find them. I put one pair in each firefighter's Christmas Stocking and kept the remaining pairs for myself. I love finding deals like that. Ilene, Garage sales are great and so are estate sells/auctions, and I think sometimes you find the best deals at sales like that because some of those old tools are from "back in the day" when tools were made to last. Y'all, I save all kinds of containers and this is only a partial listing.....yogurt cups, the tall white containers that premoistened kitchen wipes come in, milk jugs, coke bottles, the big jugs/buckets cat litter comes in, etc. I like to use the Fusion spray paint (especially made to paint plastic) to paint the cat litter buckets dark green and then, with holes drilled in the bottoms for drainage, I have containers in which to plant small Determinate tomato plants or pepper plants. I also use a lot of twine (purchased cheaply in the hardware area at Wal-Mart) and zip-ties to attach stakes to tomato cages, etc. There's no reason to spend more money for similar products packaged especially for gardeners. Those kinds of twist-ties or zip-ties or "garden twine" generally cost more than the regular stuff and isn't any better quality. I bet this thread is going to go on forever, and that's a good thing, because there's lots of good ideas here. Dawn

Gary, If you're online and see this, do you know why the sweet potato industry failed here in Oklahoma? Soil? Rainfall? Nematodes? I'm just curious because they seem insanely easy to grow here in my part of OK, especially down closer to Thackerville where the soils are mostly sandy and everyone used to grow melons commercially. I have such heavy clay that I can't grow a large number of sweet potatoes, but I do have one band of sandy soil that I generally reserve for sweet potatos. There are several of your varieties I want to try, if you have any of them left after you supply the trial with slips....and, if you don't, I'll order them from you next year. I'll e-mail you about a sweet potato order in a few days. For the rest of this week, I HAVE TO focus on potting up my small tomato plants. They are getting too crowded in the starter flat and are muttering things and plotting behind my back everytime I walk out of the plant room. If I don't get them potted up soon, I will have a rebellion on my hand. : ) And, everyone--I said I'd start a thread with a list of heirloom tomato sources/resources here in OK, and I will do it tomorrow. I promise. Today, my best-laid plans derailed when a neighbor stopped by to visit and you know I just had to catch up on all the local news, and it was mostly happy news and we just couldn't stop talking. Dawn

Available Varieties: Murasaki Molokai Purple Stokes Japanese/Hawaiian Okinawan Order Type: Unrooted Cutting Rooting Cutting Fully Rooted Cutting in Soil Plug Please PM me with your order so that I can quote a price and shipping The Murasaki Sweet Potato variety is a purple-skinned Japanese sweet potato with unique white-flesh and a distinctive nutty flavor. The purple beauty's soft white flesh is loaded with vitamin C and dietary fiber and will be a summer standout in your garden and kitchen. Robust, Murasaki is resistant to both southern root-knot nematode and Fusarium root rot. Molokai sweet potato is a purple-fleshed variety that was developed in Hawaiian. A signature type on the islands, but seldom offered elsewhere. They are much higher is antioxidants than the traditional orange fleshed variety that most people are used to. Stokes Purple sweet potato is a unique variety with purple skin and rich purple flesh that intensifies when cooked. Aside from its unique bold color, Stokes Purple® contains a high level of antioxidants, making it unusually healthy and nutritious. These sweet potatoes offer a well-balanced sweetness, and are also an excellent source of vitamin C and fiber. Okinawan Sweet Potatoes: Believed to have come from the Aztecs of South America with the Spaniards to the Philippines and China in the 1490s, the plant of these sweet potatoes did not reach Japan until the 1600s. The initial planting was in Okinawa—the southern island of Japan—before they were cultivated throughout Japan, hence the name. Eventually these purple tubers ended up in Hawaii and became a part of the native menu—they are also known as Hawaiian sweet potatoes. With a creamy, beige skin on the outside and bluish-purple flesh on the inside, these sweet potatoes are grown in Hawaii for the U.S. market. Okinawan sweet potatoes have a mildly sweet flavor with notes of honey and a dry, very starchy texture. According to The Blue Zones by Dan Buettner, consumption of these potatoes is correlated to living a longer life. Each purchase will include FREE GOODIES of seeds and heirloom tomato cuttings (SPRING ONLY): Your choices of Asian cucumber, Winter Melon, Echinacea Purpurea Cone Flower, Heirloom Tomatoes, and Asian eggplant and MORE. NOTE: I ship extra cuttings/slips with every order just in case some don’t survive the mail SATISFACTION GUARANTEED: If there are at all any issues or questions, please contact me so that I can resolve any problems! PLEASE FAVORITE ME AS A SELLER AND CHECK BACK AS I PLAN TO OFFER OTHER AMAZING SWEET POTATO VARIETIES ALL YEAR LONG THANKS FOR LOOKING! ALSO FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO ME FOR ANY SPECIAL AND CUSTOM REQUESTS!