How to Grow Sweet Potatoes from Slips

Sweet potatoes are vining plants cultivated for their tasty tubers. The plants are relatively low-maintenance as long as you can provide the right growing conditions. In this article, you’ll find out how to grow sweet potatoes from slips and keep the plants thriving until harvest time.

Sweet potato slips are shoots that sprout from mature sweet potatoes. Some gardeners start them in water, while others prefer potting soil. Rest assured that it’s not as complicated as it might initially seem.

These tropical plants are perennial in hot climates. However, sweet potatoes are often grown as annuals due to their long growing season and warm temperature needs. They require 100-150 days of warm weather above 65℉. Read on to find out all about planting sweet potatoes from slips.

Best Tips for Planting Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) belong to the morning glory plant family, along with moonflowers and water spinach. However, they’re not botanically related to yams or regular potatoes.

In most northern regions, it’s best to plant sweet potatoes indoors in late winter or early spring, approximately six weeks before your last frost date. In warm climates, plant sweet potatoes whenever the soil temperature is consistently above 60℉.

Sweet potatoes grow best in full sun but will also tolerate partial shade. In hot climates, the plants benefit from afternoon shade. Grow sweet potatoes in nutrient-rich soil that drains well and is free from obstructions like tree roots and rocks.

Most commercially-grown sweet potatoes are orange. However, some varieties produce yellow, purple, and white tubers. Here are some of the top sweet potato varieties for home gardens.

Top Sweet Potato Varieties

• All Purple (hybrid, drought-tolerant, deep purple skin and flesh, stores well, 5-8 foot vines, 120-130 days to harvest)
• Beauregard (heirloom, disease-resistant, uniform shape, red skin with deep orange flesh, stores well, 3-6 foot vines, 90-100 days to harvest)
• Centennial (heirloom, resistant to wireworms and root-knot nematodes, high yields, copper-orange skin and flesh, 15-20 foot vines, 90-100 days to harvest)
• Creamsicle (hybrid, super-sweet flavor, creamy white skin with orange flesh, 3-6 foot vines, 100-110 days to harvest)
• Jewel (heirloom, disease-resistant, high yields, copper-orange skin and flesh, stores well, 5-8 foot vines, 120-135 days to harvest)
• Patriot (hybrid, exceptional pest resistance, deep orange skin and flesh, 3-6 foot vines, 100-110 days to harvest)
• Stokes (heirloom, disease-resistant, rich purple skin and flesh, stores well, -8 foot vines, 110-120 days to harvest)
• White Delight (heirloom, super-sweet flavor, light purple or red skin with creamy white flesh, 3-6 foot vines, 100-110 days to harvest)

How to Sprout Sweet Potato Slips

Sweet potato plants don’t grow from seeds. Instead, they grow from the “slips” or sprouts of mature tubers. To guarantee that your sweet potato slips grow true to the varietciny and are disease-free, purchasing them from a reputable source is best.

Or, if you’d prefer propagating your own sweet potato slips, look for healthy, organic sweet potatoes at the farmer’s market or grocery store. Place the whole sweet potato in a half-full jar of water. Use toothpicks to suspend the tuber if necessary.

Or, fill a wide tray with at least four inches of high-quality potting soil or compost and plant your sweet potato several inches deep. Keep the soil consistently moist while the sweet potato slips develop.

Keep the container in a warm location while the sweet potato sprouts, ideally at least 75-80℉. While the tuber’s bottom develops roots, the top part grows leafy new plants.

After four to six weeks, your sweet potato slips will be ready to transplant. Carefully remove them with their roots intact when they’re 6-12 inches long. Grip the stem where it meets the tuber and gently twist it to detach.

Plant sweet potato slips directly into your garden, or place them in a glass of water or containers filled with sandy soil until the weather warms up enough for transplanting. Bury the slips up to their lowest set of leaves.

P​lanting Sweet Potato Slips

The best time to plant sweet potato slips in most northern climates is a week or two after the typical last frost date. That way, the tender young plants won’t get damaged by a late spring frost. The plants are highly cold-sensitive and can’t withstand freezing temperatures.

The soil temperature should be consistently above 65℉, with nighttime temperatures staying above 55℉. It’s helpful to warm up your garden soil by covering the beds with a generous layer of dark-colored mulch, organic compost, or a sheet of black plastic a week or two ahead of transplanting.

Make hills or mounds of earth that are 6 to 8 inches tall and 12 inches wide. Then, plant two or three sweet potato slips per hill. This planting method keeps the soil warmer and helps water drain away from the plant’s main stem.

How Far Apart to Plant Sweet Potato Slips

Proper plant spacing is crucial for growing a successful sweet potato crop. Overcrowding results in stunted plant growth and a lower yield.

Plan for about one square foot per sweet potato plant. Spacing between mounds should be three to four feet.

Sweet potato vines grow roots wherever they touch the soil, which then produce edible tubers. Encourage the vines to spread out laterally for maximum yield.

Ideal Growing Conditions for Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes need plenty of sunshine and heat. Plant them in a location with full sun and loose soil that’s rich in organic matter. Raised beds work well to grow sweet potatoes because the earth won’t become compacted, and harvesting is more convenient.

Sweet potato plants are relatively drought-tolerant once established. However, keep the soil evenly moist for the first several weeks after planting sweet potato slips to minimize transplant shock. After that, give the plants approximately one inch of water per week or more during hot or dry weather.

Sweet potatoes usually don’t need supplemental fertilizer when growing in nutrient-rich soil that you amended with organic compost or well-rotted manure. Alternatively, mix an all-purpose, slow-release organic fertilizer into your garden soil before planting.

Planting Sweet Potato Slips in Containers

Growing sweet potatoes in pots is an excellent solution for urban gardeners or those with limited space. Use a large pot at least 12 inches deep and wide with several drainage holes at the bottom.

Then, fill your container with well-draining, nutrient-rich potting soil. Plant your sweet potato slips according to the instructions above. After planting, thoroughly saturate the soil.

Keep the soil consistently moist but not oversaturated. It should have a similar consistency to a wrung-out sponge.

Harvesting and Storing Homegrown Sweet Potatoes

Wait to harvest your sweet potatoes until the vines turn yellow in late summer or early fall, before the first frost. If you’d like to harvest baby sweet potatoes, dig them up one or two weeks before they’re fully mature.

Begin by carefully loosening the soil with a trowel or gardening fork. Then, pull out the sweet potato tubers, starting at the plant’s central crown.

Did you know that sweet potato leaves are also edible? They’re highly nutritious, and an excellent source of protein, calcium, iron, beta carotene, zinc, and vitamin B. Pick sweet potato leaves as needed throughout the growing season. They have a delicate, slightly bitter flavor similar to turnip greens.

Cure sweet potatoes for one month after harvesting to toughen their skin for storage. In addition, the curing process draws out the best flavor as starches naturally get converted into sugars. When properly cured, sweet potatoes will keep for up to seven months.

After digging them up, dry your sweet potatoes in the sun for several hours. Next, move them to a warm, dry location and place them in a ventilated container for about 10 days. Finally, store your homegrown sweet potatoes at 55-60℉ and cure them for two or three more weeks. To find out more about curing sweet potatoes at home, check out this article from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System.

Growing sweet potato slips is a fun and rewarding DIY project. The best way to plant sweet potatoes depends on your climate and available garden space. Sweet potato plants are relatively low-maintenance and grow well in mounds and raised beds. It’s even possible to grow sweet potatoes from slips in containers.

Have you ever tried growing sweet potatoes at home? Please share how it went in the comments below! If you enjoyed learning how to start sweet potato slips, please share these gardening tips with your fellow green thumbs.