THE SWEET POTATO IN HAWAII. 
By H. L. Chung, Specialist in Tropical Agronomy. 
CONTENTS. 
Introduction 1 
Botanical relationship 2 
Cultivation in ancient times 2 
Place in the Hawaiian cropping system 2 
Adaptation to Hawaii 2 
Soil 3 
Methods of culture 4 
Grading 9 
Storing 10 
Cost of production 10 
InsBct enemies and methods of control 11 
Fungus diseases and means of controlling 
them 13 
Varieties of sweet potatoes in Hawaii 15 
Composition of the sweet potato 15 
Recipes 16 
Sweet potatoes as feed for farm animals 19 
Summary 19 
INTRODUCTION. 1 
It can not be definitely determined when the sweet potato (Ipornoea 
batatas) was first cultivated in Hawaii, but it is thought that the 
crop has been under cultivation on the island since about 500 A. D., 2 
because the taro, which is a companion crop of the sweet potato, has, 
from the earliest days, constituted the staple food crop of the natives. 
Captain Cook records the finding in 1778 of specimens of taro of 
large size, and sweet potatoes, weighing 12 to 14 pounds, in the 
Hawaiian Islands, then known as the Sandwich Islands. 
The sweet potato first became of commercial importance to the 
Islands in about 1849. It ranked tenth in value of the agricultural 
crops in 1919, having been reintroduced as an emergency crop. 
The World War was an efficient factor in emphasizing the need of 
producing locally grown food crops to make the island independent 
of imported foodstuffs; and during this period the sweet potato was 
used in place of potatoes, occasionally instead of barley and oats 
for farm animals and for wheat and corn for poultry, and as a partial 
substitute for wheat flour in the making of bread and pastries. 
The crop is no longer exported, owing to rigorous quarantine regu- 
lations. 
Today the sweet potato is found growing in back yards and school 
gardens and on areas covering upward of 50 acres on large ranches 
throughout the islands. Fully 350 acres, located principally on 
the islands of Hawaii and Maui, are now under cultivation. This 
crop will undoubtedly play an important role in the further de- 
velopment of the diversified agricultural industries of the islands, 
more especially since it affords large returns in money from small 
areas. 
' The writer desires to express his appreciation to those in charge of the Bishop Museum, Honolulu, 
for their courtesy in placing at his disposal information relative to ancient methods of cultivating the sweet 
potato in Hawaii, and also to F. G. Krauss, former superintendent of the Haiku substation, who very 
kindly contributed data obtained at that substation. 
J Alexander, W. D. A Brief History of the Hawaiian People, p. 19. 
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