80 



t January, i9J2. 



HORTICULTURE. 



SWEET POTATO GROWING. 



By Dr. J. C. Whitten, 

 Professor of Horticulture, University of 

 Missouri. 



(Fourth Annual Report of the Missouri 

 State Board of Horticulture, 1911.) 

 While the sweet potato reaches its 

 best yields towards the south, ax the 

 same time it may be profitably grown 

 in Missouri. A fair yield may be expect- 

 ed on almost any ordinary farm land. 

 Some of our richer bottom lands are 

 less well suited to its profitable develop- 

 ment than are the uplands of moderate 

 fertility. 



The plants make excessive vine 

 growth, and the potatoes are less desir- 

 able in quality on the richest heaviest 

 soils. A loose, light soil tending towards 

 sandiness is preferable. At least a fair 

 yield may be had, however, on almo&t 

 any well drained land that will grow an 

 ordinary corn crop. 



Varieties, — Among the varieties most 

 usually planted are the Nansemond, 

 Jersey, Cuban Queen and Vineless. 



Propagation.— Sweet potatoes are pro- 

 pagated by means of sprouts, or draws 

 produced in hotbeds from sweet potato 

 tubers. The hotbed should be made in 

 early spring, and the sweet potatoes 

 imbedded, lying close together in a layer 

 and covered with 2 or 3 inches of soil. 

 As soon as the sprouts are well up, 

 they may be broken off close to the 

 sweet potato, each containing a few 

 roots near the base and planted out. If 

 desirable, these draws may be made into 

 cuttings and made long enough to con- 

 tain three buds; one bud at the base 

 of each cutting, and two above. These 

 cuttings may be rooted by inserting 

 them an inch apart in rows 5 or 6 inches 

 apart in soil or sand in the hotbed. 

 Cuttings should be set deep enough 

 so that the upper bud will be above the 

 soil. Root will quickly be produced 

 below, especially from the vicinity of 

 the two buds which are beneath the soil. 



Preparation of the Field.— The land 

 should be ploughed to a good depth and 

 thoroughly harrowed and pulverized. 

 The aim should be to give level culture. 



Planting, — It possible, the time select- 

 ed for setting out the plants should be 

 When the soil is fairly moist, but not 

 wet enough to be sticky. Plants should 

 be set 2 feet apart in rows 4 feet apart. 

 Many growers set by turning the 

 furrow -with a turning plough; drop* 



ping the plants in the furrow and 

 covering with the loose soil which was 

 turned out. Other growers simply mark 

 the rows with a marker and set the 

 plants with a spade. The spade may 

 be inserted in the soil and pushed for- 

 ward, leaving the space for the plants 

 and its roots behind the spade. The 

 second person inserts the plants behind 

 the spade to a good depth, and when 

 the spade is withdrawn, the soil is 

 pressed firmly back against the plant 

 with the foot. 



Cultivation. — Frequent and thorough 

 cultivation should be given. On very 

 wet land it may be desirable to £row 

 the plants in ridges. Level cultivation, 

 however, is perferable on most soils. 

 Cultivation may continue until the vines 

 cover the ground. In the later cultiv- 

 atings, growing vines will be dragged 

 lengthwise of the rows. A little later, 

 they will branch laterally so as to cover 

 all the space between the rows and keep 

 down weeds. 



The question is frequently asked 

 whether it is best to pinch off the tips 

 of the vines to induce tuber formation. 

 With the same question in mind, some 

 growers advise coiling the vines around 

 the hills so that they will make length 

 growth less rapidly. These methods of 

 checking length growth probably do 

 not pay under average conditions. It 

 is usually best to allow the plants to 

 make their own natural growth. 



The potatoes should be dug justbefoie 

 frost. If a frost accidently catches the 

 vines, digging should be done as soon 

 as possible. 



Storage.— Sweet potatoes are among 

 the most difficult root crops to store 

 successfully. The most important factors 

 to secure successf ul storage are never to 

 bruise the sweet potatoes, to keep them 

 dry, and to prevent extremes of heat or 

 cold. Since bruises induce rot, the sweet 

 potato should be handled with great 

 care in harvesting. The sweet potatoes 

 should be allowed to dry thoroughly 

 after digging. For that reason, it is 

 well to dig in the forenoon of a sunny 

 day and pick them up in the afternoon 

 after their surfaces have dried. If the 

 weather is very wet as it is difficult to 

 dry in the field, it becomes desirable, if 

 possible, to dry them spread out under 

 shelter before storing. 



Sweet potatoes may be stored by pit- 

 ting them in the field or in specially con- 

 structed potato houses or storage rooms. 

 Sweet potato storage cellars should be 

 well ventilated, sweet potatoes should be 

 put in bushel crates, and stored in ricks 



