CropStraightforward
Sweet potato
Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.
Temperature
18°C to 28°C
Rainfall
670mm to 1420mm per season
Conditions
What it needs
Soil
Light, well-drained soil on ridges. It will produce on poorer ground than most root crops.
Water
Needs rain to establish the vines, then tolerates dry spells better than most. Too much nitrogen grows vine instead of root.
What you will need
Tick what you already have; Grow carries the rest into the cost working.
Grow holds no supplier listings and no local prices, so it cannot tell you where to buy these or what they cost near you. Ask at your nearest agrodealer or extension office, then put those figures into the planner.
Through the season
Stages
- 01
Land preparation
10 days- Plough
- Make ridges
- 02
Planting
3 days- Plant vine cuttings into moist ridges
- 03
Establishment
21 days- Gap up where cuttings failed
- First weeding
- 04
Vine growth
40 days- Second weeding
- Re-ridge to cover cracks
- 05
Root bulking
45 days- Keep the ridges closed
- Watch for weevil
- 06
Harvest
14 days- Lift without bruising
- Cure before storing
Watch for
Common problems
Sweet potato weevil
- What you will see
- Tunnels in the roots, a bitter smell, and vines that wilt.
- What to do
- Plant clean cuttings, ridge up so cracks do not expose the roots, harvest on time, and rotate away from old fields.
Sweet potato virus disease
- What you will see
- Puckered, mottled leaves and roots that stay small.
- What to do
- Take cuttings only from healthy plants, and replace planting material rather than cycling the same vines for years.
Follow the label for doses, and ask an extension officer or vet before using a chemical you have not used before.