Growing sweet potato for the greens

We love eating the sweet potato tops more than the tuber itself and I would like to grow them this year. What I had not realized was that there are several varieties of sweet potato available. http://www.tatorman.com/products.htm

Is there a variety that has more tender and milder flavored greens than the others? The greens that I buy at the market are usually green but sometimes I also see the reddish/purplish kind.

Thank you for your help.

All sweet [potato tops are edible but I find the ones from the oriental groceries are more tender. Buy a bunch at the grocery store and after you eat the greens soak the stem for 2 days and you have them ready to be planted. How do you prepare yours? We can exchange recipes. they are very rich in iron. Belle

Hey, bellieg--thanks! Never occurred to me to root the stems. Hmm, if I can get a few to grow, perhaps I might set one aside to produce tubers and see what the mystery-variety greens might be.

DSF

Thanks, Belle. I'll give that a try.

We usually do a quick stir-fry with garlic or garlic & black bean sauce. Or just blanched and dipped in soy sauce with a squeeze of calamondin.
We also use it in a clear shrimp broth soup.

Hadn't heard of 'calamondin' before. Where do you find it?

Calamondin are small lime. They resemble the lime in Mexico. They are very strong so you just use few drops. Do you eat the sweet potato greens?

Calamondin are small like the mexican or key lime. The rind is thin and they ripen to a beautiful orange like a kumquat. They are sour with large seeds and a very prominent tangerine overtone.

Quyen.....do you grow your own 'calamondin' ..??..

You can find them at a big nursery. Kind of pricey but are very tropical. Can not be left out during cold weather.

I do have a plant (in picture). Got it from the local OSH. The grower is Four Winds, based in California.

Mine is going on its third year in a big pot. True that it won't tolerate freeze...but I'm sure it'll do fine inside during winter.

I am bumping this up so i can post pictures of the sweet potato leaves from a white flesh potato. I have a golf game this morning but will post pix this PM. Belle

As promised here is a new found. I bought white flesh sweet potato from an Asian grocery store and sprouted it first in water.I planted them in large planters The leaves are the same as the leaves on sale at ate oriental grocery store. Potato leaves are very rich in iron not to mention roughage. i just microwave. Belle

I forgot to attach the pictures

This message was edited Jun 18, 2010 3:56 PM

Here is a couple of pix

another pix

Sweet potato greens? Never even heard of this! Any type of actual sweet potato (rather than a yam) you can cook and eat the greens?

I didn't do any sweet potatos this year but last year I grew a few of the Beauregard cultivars. The tops were very profuse and in the end the tubers were okay, but nothing over a quarter pound. Should I have been picking the leaves and incorporating them with other saute veggies?

yes and yes they are edible and very rich in iron..Try it and I hope you like it. I love just microwaving it half done and just dip it in balsamic vinegar mix. Belle