Sweet Potatoes: How to Grow and When to Plant in Your Backyard or Patio Garden!

How to Grow:

Sweet potatoes are planted 3-4 weeks after your last spring frost and up until 15 weeks before your first fall frost. You can see specific dates for your location using our FREE iOS, Android, and Universal Web App.

Seed potatoes are planted 6 inches deep, 1 per square foot, in the full sun. Take care to notice what plants are around the area as well, see the companion plant section below. Water your sweet potatoes weekly.

Companion Plants:

Companion planting is a vital part of organic gardening. Companion plants assist in the growth of others by attracting beneficial insects, repelling pests, or providing nutrients, shade, or support. There are also plants that do not like being next to each other. Some plants get too tall and can provide too much shade for your plant. Sometimes certain plants attract the same pests, so it is important to try and separate these.

 
See companion plants for 80+ foods in our FREE iOS, Android, and Universal Web app!

Pests:

Pests can be one of the most difficult challenges you face in the garden. We strive to grow food without the use of pesticide and luckily there are natural solutions for most of these nasty pests! The pests listed below are common ones for potatoes:

• Deer
• Flea Beetles
• Gophers
• Rabbits
• Wireworms

Learn more about how to manage pests and attract beneficial insects in our FREE iOS, Android, and Universal Web App!

Harvesting:

Sweet potatoes will be ready to harvest in about 100-120 days. Sweet potatoes need to be harvested before frost. They are typically ready to harvest when the end of the vine begins to turn yellow. Dig with your hands to collect the sweet potatoes. We’ve found it’s easier to grow potatoes in containers and like using the Smart Pots containers for this purpose.

Cooking & Eating!

Learn more about growing over 80 different foods, including how to manage various pests in our FREE iOS, Android, or new Universal Web App!