Growing A Sweet Potato Vine In Water

Although much of the us does not have a long enough growing season to produce mature sweet potatoes they can be grown in water to create an interesting houseplant.

Growing a sweet potato vine in water.

Ornamental varieties may also be grown in containers and taken indoors for the winter. Ornamental sweet potato vines are in the same family as edible sweet potatoes and are in fact the same species. Keep the top 1 3 of the potato exposed by placing toothpicks into the sides. Sweet potatoes are a carbohydrate rich source of food for millions of people in developing countries.

The pointed end should be down in the water. In the us they are primarily grown for food in usda zones 9 to 11. Follow these steps to planting and growing your own sweet potato vine indoors. As a tropical plant it prefers warmer temperatures.

The ornamental varieties are simply cultivars of the species plant. One of the easiest ways to create multi seasonal interest in the garden is to use plants with interesting foliage. This sweet potato plant propagation. Loose soil is more critical than almost any other factor when it comes to growing sweet potatoes successfully.

You don t want the roots to face resistance when they try to expand within the soil. In addition the vines grow readily in water. Keep the water level constant and empty the water and refill the jar with. Plant a sweet potato in water and almost before your eyes it transforms into a sprawling vine with lime green or purple tinged leaves.

Use an organic sweet potato. Even better the leaves are edible and tasty. They are bred for the beauty of their leaves rather than edible tubers and the vines from these plants make them look more like a morning glory or clematis than a member of the potato family. This video provides procedure on how to grow sweet potato vines from a tuber of the plant in water jar container at home.

The one season in which it s generally not advisable to plant sweet potato vines is the winter. Sweet potato vine ipomoea batatas named for its edible cousin is an ornamental warm season annual grown for its attractive leaves and vining habit the foliage lends a tropical feel to the garden and comes in a range of colors and varying forms. Before you plant sweet potato slips you have a little extra work to do. When to plant sweet potato vine.

However depending on your growing zone it can be planted at other times of year. The sweet potato vines will continue growing in water for months or even years whether from cuttings or from a tuber. The sweet potato produces vine like stems that resemble the philodendron plant. In a few weeks a vine with several stems will begin to sprout.

Most of the time the sweet potato plant is planted in the spring.