If you want to plant sweet potato slips, it will require considerable time, patience and effort on your part. Sweet potato slips require more care than your average plant but they also give you a lot of great rewards. Our following sweet potato slip gardening guide will walk you through some of the steps involved in planting sweet potato slips.
Required Materials
You will need the following items in order to plant sweet potato slips.
- a healthy bunch of sweet potatoes
- toothpicks (a pack)
- small containers / jars
- water
- sunlight
Steps Involved in Planting Sweet Potato Slips
The first thing you ought to do to plant sweet potato slips is to inspect your sweet potatoes. Check for openings when you inspect the skin. You should also look out for molds and spots. A simple rule should be that if a sweet potato looks good enough for you to cook and eat then it is good to be used.
It does not matter where your sweet potatoes come from. They will do just fine even if you have bought them from your local farmer’s market or some other store. You can even use the ones grown by you the previous year and stored the entire winter.
The next step to plant sweet potato slips will require some work on your potatoes and toothpicks. Gently push a toothpick all the way through about half way down one sweet potato. Grab another toothpick and push it all the way through on the same level. The toothpicks should form something like a cross or a plus sign.
The idea is to use the toothpicks as support to hold up the potato when it is placed inside your container. Your potato should be able to stand upright and should never tip over. The toothpicks will act like a platform, giving the sweet potato enough room to grow roots.
Tips
Sometimes, pushing that toothpick in, can be a little tough. In case your toothpick gets stuck at one point, it will help if you twist it as you push it in. Be very careful not to damage the potato. Be a little patient while doing this and do not give up even if you break a few toothpicks while you are at it.
The next steps involved in planting sweet potato slips are relatively easier. The toothpicks should allow your potato to rest on the rim of your container or jar, if you prefer to use those. Rest your potatoes on the rims and add enough water, almost to the top of the rim. Place your containers in a sunny spot and refill the jars when the water level drops.
Slips will grow on each eye and will eventually grow into a vine. You can pluck each vine and plant them in your garden. Pick them when they are about six inches long.
Additional Information on How to Plant Sweet Potato Slips
For more information on how to plant sweet potato slips, you can also read:
How To Plant Sweet Potato Slips
