Sweetpotatoes

[duckcreekfarms]

Thanks George

I have been wondering why you didn't have a section for Sweet and other potatoes...

[macmex]

I'm a little slow, Gary. That's the only way I can explain it. Today, it suddenly hit me, "We need a forum dedicated to potatoes!"

[snickeringbear]

I'm a little slow

Is it age? or a matter of genetics and personal ancestry?

Smile and have a happy day.

[glen]

Sweet potato's are my most favorite crop so I will be interested in what the experts share about them. My main issues right now seem to concern the grubs and pests that are in my soil. Crop rotation is not really an option for me. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do to hold down the pests in the soil? Unfortuneately that might mean some kind of pesticide? Hope not.

[macmex]

I'm not sure what to say, without some kind of rotation. Even if it was simply planting the sweet potato patch in a new patch of soil, off to one side of the old, each year, that's what I would do. Otherwise, at least, when you start new plants, I'd recommend that you use slips and nothing with already established roots. I'll be interested in what others, here, have to say.

[glen]

George, I think I was trying to find a short cut where no such thing exists. I am going to grow less sweet potato's by growing them on different sides of the garden each time I plant. The site I just cleared out will be planted in okra. I need to learn permaculture techniques that allow me to grow veggy's year around. Sounds like continuing to plant spuds in the same spot breaks all the rules. Actually, I need very Little sweet potato's in the yard to be enough for my kitchen. Maty, my partner is interested in selling sweet potato's. They sell good too. If I can't find more space, thats just not going to happen. Small plot gardening has its limitations obviously.

[fourteenmilecreek]

Can you grow sweet potatoes hydroponically?

my Great Granddad grew hydroponic tomatoes in the 1960s, using two underground 55 gallon barrels to collect water from a fish pond. All he had for a greenhouse was a half wall rock building 4 feet tall, with windows on two sides, a roof made of corrugated Fiberglas, and homemade hydroponic beds made of galvanized roofing sheet metal, nailed to the bottoms of 12 foot long 2" x 4" frames.

The frames were sitting on top of saw horses, at a slight incline. They were lined with plastic sheeting, laying across the corrugated sheet metal bottom. The beds were hand filled with pea size creek gravel. A small fish tank water pump provided water from the barrels that flowed slowly across the beds, and drained into a gutter that provided the return trip to the underground barrels. He used a pillow inside a 5 gallon bucket, as a water filtration system. When the pillow was shot, he'd bury it in the grape vineyard and replace it with another one. (Homeless shelters throw away pillows all the time) a couple days in the filtration bucket killed the cooties.

His trellis was made of old hog wire stretched under an extension ladder that the fire department discarded.

I remember picking cucumbers that were hanging suspended through the ladder rungs as a kid; they were straight as string, with no bug damage. He hand picked bugs without bending over, because the whole thing was about 2-1/2' feet off the ground. Cucumbers and tomatoes love growing together. The constant water flow kept squash bugs out of the vines.

*******************In Oklahoma, if you cage chickens in several 4' foot by 4' foot bottomless pens for two weeks, then scoot each one over to a new spot as the weeks pass, the chickens will scratch out and eat all the grubs. The ammonia in their manure will kill everything else. do this all Winter and there will be no bugs in that area for the rest of the season, and very few weeds will survive in that spot either. Mulch it with wood bark from the wood splitting pile, and corn cobs from the corn crib at the hog shed, and you have a ready made potato patch for Spring planting.**************************************************************************************************************

[macmex]

I have never heard of growing sweet potatoes using hydroponics. But that doesn't mean that it couldn't be done. Sounds like your great grandfather was quite innovative! We could use more innovators!

Thanks for the GREAT tips about chickens! It's too late, this year, for me to try. But I might get to it for 2016! The permaculture crowd has been experimenting with such techniques for a while and all reports have been encouraging.

[duckcreekfarms]

Sweetpotato plants grow great in water, but not for a root crop. In fact I have seen them recommended for uing in aquariums, the roots make a good hiding plance for babies. I don't thnk there are any root crops that would make a good cnidate for aquaculture.