Sweet Potato Slips Variety Pack – 15 Live Slips (Korea Purple, Okinawa, White)

Overview

Embark on a rewarding gardening journey with our premium selection of sweet potato slips. This diverse variety pack includes 15 vigorous slips, offering a blend of unique flavors and colors: the distinctive Korea Purple, the popular Okinawa, and the classic White sweet potato. Each slip is a young sprout cut from a mature sweet potato, ready to be planted and grow into productive vines that yield bountiful harvests. Sweet potatoes are not only delicious and versatile in the kitchen but also packed with essential vitamins and nutrients, making them a fantastic addition to any home garden. Growing your own sweet potato slips ensures you start with healthy, vibrant plant material, setting the stage for a successful and abundant crop.

These sweet potato slips are perfect for gardeners of all experience levels, providing an exciting opportunity to explore different sweet potato varieties. The Korea Purple offers a stunning deep purple flesh, rich in antioxidants. The Okinawa sweet potato is known for its vibrant purple flesh and slightly nutty flavor, a staple in many healthy diets. The White sweet potato, a classic, provides a creamy texture and mild sweetness, ideal for a wide range of culinary uses. This collection simplifies the process of growing your own sweet potatoes, delivering ready-to-plant starts directly to your door.

Key Benefits

Growing your own sweet potato slips offers numerous advantages, from fresh, healthy produce to the satisfaction of harvesting your own food. This variety pack enhances those benefits by providing a diverse culinary experience.

• Diverse Culinary Options: Enjoy the unique flavors and textures of Korea Purple, Okinawa, and White sweet potatoes, perfect for roasting, baking, frying, or mashing. The distinct colors also add visual appeal to your meals.
• Nutrient-Rich Harvest: Sweet potatoes are a powerhouse of nutrition, rich in vitamins A and C, fiber, and antioxidants. The purple varieties, like purple sweet potato and okinawa sweet potato, are especially noted for their anthocyanin content.
• Easy to Grow: Sweet potato slips are remarkably easy to establish and maintain, making them an excellent choice for beginner gardeners. They thrive in warm conditions and require minimal fuss once planted.
• High Yield Potential: With proper care, each slip can produce several large, healthy sweet potatoes, providing a substantial harvest from a relatively small planting area.
• Sustainable Gardening: By growing your own, you reduce your carbon footprint and have complete control over the growing conditions, ensuring your sweet potatoes are free from unwanted chemicals.
• Adaptable Growth: Sweet potato vines can be grown in traditional garden beds, raised beds, or even large containers, offering flexibility for various garden sizes and setups.

Plant Care & Growing Tips

To successfully grow sweet potatoes from slips, understanding their basic needs is crucial. Sweet potatoes thrive in warm climates and prefer a long growing season. Plant your sweet potato slips after all danger of frost has passed and soil temperatures have consistently reached at least 65°F (18°C). Choose a location that receives full sun, meaning at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight per day. Adequate sunlight is essential for the development of large, flavorful tubers.

The ideal soil for sweet potatoes is loose, well-draining, and rich in organic matter. A sandy loam is often recommended, as it allows the tubers to expand easily. Avoid heavy clay soils, which can impede tuber development and lead to rotting. Amend your soil with compost or well-rotted manure to improve fertility and drainage. Plant the slips about 12-18 inches apart in rows that are 3-4 feet apart, burying them deep enough so that at least two to three nodes are covered. Water thoroughly after planting to help establish the slips. Sweet potatoes generally require consistent moisture, especially during dry periods, but avoid overwatering, which can lead to root rot. Fertilize sparingly with a balanced fertilizer, focusing on potassium for tuber development rather than excessive nitrogen which can encourage leafy growth at the expense of tubers. Keep an eye out for pests like sweet potato weevils and diseases, addressing any issues promptly to protect your crop of white sweet potato, Okinawa, and Korea Purple varieties.

Size & Details

This offering includes 15 vigorous sweet potato slips, each carefully selected for health and vitality. These slips are typically 6-10 inches in length, with several nodes ready to root upon planting. They are shipped freshly cut and carefully packaged to ensure they arrive in optimal condition for planting. Sweet potatoes are fast-growing vines, and you can expect significant foliage development within a few weeks of planting. Tubers will begin to form underground, typically maturing in 90-120 days, depending on the variety and growing conditions. The Korea Purple, Okinawa sweet potato, and White varieties are all known for producing medium to large tubers, offering a substantial yield per slip. These slips offer an excellent opportunity to grow sweet potatoes in your home garden, providing a fresh and healthy harvest.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: How big does this sweet potato plant get? A: Sweet potato plants are vigorous vining plants that can spread several feet horizontally. The tubers themselves can grow quite large, often reaching 6-12 inches in length and weighing several ounces to over a pound, depending on growing conditions and variety.
• Q: What size pot is recommended for growing sweet potatoes? A: If growing in containers, opt for large pots or grow bags, at least 15-20 gallons in size, to allow sufficient space for tuber development. Smaller pots will restrict growth and yield.
• Q: Is this an indoor or outdoor plant? A: Sweet potatoes are outdoor plants that require warm temperatures and full sun to produce tubers. They are typically grown as annuals in most climates, though they can be perennial in tropical zones.
• Q: How much sunlight does it need? A: Sweet potato plants need at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight per day for optimal tuber production. More sun generally leads to a better harvest.
• Q: Is this plant easy to care for? A: Yes, sweet potatoes are relatively easy to care for once established. They are quite tolerant of varying soil conditions and are generally low-maintenance, making them a great choice for beginners looking to grow sweet potatoes.
• Q: What condition will the sweet potato slips arrive in? A: The slips are freshly cut and carefully packaged to ensure they arrive in good, viable condition. They may appear slightly wilted upon arrival, which is normal, and they usually perk up quickly after planting and watering.
• Q: When is the best time to plant sweet potato slips? A: Plant your sweet potato slips after the last spring frost, when soil temperatures are consistently above 65°F (18°C), typically late spring to early summer.
• Q: Will it survive winter in my zone? A: Sweet potatoes are sensitive to frost. In most temperate climates, they are grown as annuals and will not survive winter outdoors. In USDA Zone 9 and warmer, they may overwinter if mulched heavily.
• Q: Can I use purple sweet potato in cooking? A: Absolutely! All varieties of sweet potatoes, including the Korea Purple and Okinawa, are excellent for cooking. They can be roasted, baked, mashed, fried, or used in desserts and savory dishes.
• Q: How long until I can harvest the sweet potatoes? A: Sweet potatoes typically mature in 90-120 days after planting the slips, depending on the variety and local climate. You can usually harvest them before the first fall frost.