Companions for sweet potatoes?

HoneyBee, voles hate garlic, so you might get some garlic to spray or pour around your beds, or put garlic in the blender and strain the juice, then spray it around your sweet potatoes. Here are some other homemade repellants: http://www.ehow.com/info_8377399_homemade-repellents-voles.html

Keep trying. :)

Solace - I noticed the voles ate onions, but left the garlic alone, so had given some thought to planting garlic amongst the sweet potatoes next year.

They like parsley, but haven't touched the basil growing next to it!

I'm glad they left the beans alone. They decimated a crop of beans a few years back.

That's good to know, about the onions and voles. I'm trying to start onion seeds, now. Also, I didn't know they like beans so much. The varmints!

Believe it or not voles will come a try to get spam out of mouse traps, I can't tell you how many I've caught when I was really trying to catch mice. I didn't know they liked meat, well who knows what is in spam, I don't eat it but DH does...LOL

Jan

meadowyck - are you sure you caught voles with spam and not moles?

you know now that I think of it it was moles, so sorry for the mix up. I just remember at the time I couldn't catch the mice for all the moles getting into the trap.... Had a mouse family move in under a dog whelping box during the winter in the garage and there was enough space under the box as it was on runners for the mice to have a breeding session of their own like I've never seen... When we first started setting the traps every 2 minutes my DH was going out and reloading the traps, then he called in one time to say what is this? Caught over 10 of them, and I had always heard that there wasn't too many of them as they keep to territories.

Sorry again about mixing the moles with the voles. Moles that we caught had the long ant eater noses on them

Jan

Jan, no worries about the mix-up. I thought it had to be moles as they are meat eaters. From what I've read, voles are vegetarians. They sure love to eat sweet potatoes. I've lost half my crop to them so far!

Have ya'll considered growing sweeties in containers? I'm growing mine in a Rubbermaid container (35 gallons). I used a 5/8" drill bit to drilled holes all over the bottom and about 1/4" up the sides for drainage.

The only thing attacking my sweeties is either a cricket or some pill bugs chewing holes in the leaves. But, I have a good 18" of soil depth in the container. I'll post a pic when I remember to take one.

Linda

Linda, paper wasps like sweet potato leaves also. They use the leaves (chewed up and mixed with their saliva) to make their nests.

Thanks for the heads up on the bees, Lady Lily!

Gymgirl - with all the problems I've had with voles, I have given some thought to growing sweet potatoes in pots next year. I would LOVE to hear how yours did when you harvest them.

I have several 25 gallon pots that I could use.

http://www.growersupply.com/25gablmo6co.html

What soil recipe did you use? Did you put one slip in each 35 gallon container?

Bee,
I was sooooooooo busy last week (vacation) with home improvement projects INSIDE, I'm sorry I haven't responded sooner.

Here's a pic of the kind of tub I'm using -- they're waaaaaaaaaaaaay cheaper than the tubs you're considering. I filled mine with the same pine bark mixture I used for my containers last time, to stretch the soil on the cheap (that's a theme with me...). Basically, 5 parts PBFs, 2-3 parts peat (I used old, spent, MG potting mix), and 1 part perlite. I sprinkled in enough Dolomitic Lime and some Triple 13 TR fertilizer (just a bit).

I water deeply until I get run off through the drain holes, about once a week now. I use MG Water Soluble in a hose end sprayer.

I have no clue what's going on down in that tub, but the vines sure look healthy. They've long since spilled over the side of the tub and are trailing beautifully down my fence line.

I'll turn the tub over on a tarp (the truly wonderful part of harvesting in a container) sometime in November? December? or whenever the temps dip low enough to threaten the foliage and shut it down.

I'll take pics of the potato vines this evening and post tomorrow.

My neighbor dug up a piece of his volunteer sweetie vines from last season. I just buried the rooted part in the soil, and threw more soil along the vine that I laid on top of the soil. I think the nodules along the vine that touched the soil have rooted cause the tub is filled with vines now, from the little piece I started with.

Linda

Linda, I already have the 25 gallon pots. I thought I would try using them first before investing in the 35 gallon Rubbermaid tubs.

I'm looking forward to seeing how many sweets you harvest.

The sweet potatoes that the voles have left me look fine on the surface. I'll have to wait until October to find out how many they've left me underground.

Ok, Bee. I'll be sure to post the harvest pics here.

Linda

So I didn't know that sweet potato plants flowered! They are really nice looking too.

urbanveggies412 - I, too, was surprised the first time I saw a sweet potato flower. They are in the "Morning Glory" bindweed family, so the flowers are similar.

So nice they flower in cooler areas. They flower constantly here. Wonder if one could do a bit of hybridizing? I would love to have the flavor of Georgia Jets with the crack resistance of Centennial.

Uh, nothing beats a wish but a try! Break out that Q-tip and go for it!

Calalily, I'm with Gymgirl, go for it!

Jan

I'll give it a try when I get home! I have some growing in the greenhouse as a cover crop, I will let some continue to grow and try a bit of crossing.

So I guess the plants also go to seed? When they start flowering and going to seed is that any indication that the potatoes are ready for harvest?

Thanks,
Jake

And a picture of my small over crowded patch with some flowers in between. I can't remember the name of the flowers right now, doh!

Coneflowers?

P.S. I asked about this pic over on the other thread you updated. Don't worry about a reply, except for the benefit of the others.

Sweeties! Mine are in a 35 gallon Rubbermaid tub, and have spilled over the side. They're running along the fenceline, and look just like yours. I'm not gonna touch them until close to the frost date, around December 7th or earlier if it looks like the cold is threatening the vines.

Once the temps dip, I'll tip the tub over onto a tarp, and see what I"ve got. Sort of like waking up on Christmas morning, and heading for the Christmas tree...

Linda

Just because they flower doesn't mean they are ready to dig. I haven't found any seed pods on my sweeties, but I haven't really looked. I'm not at home right now, so can't go out and check.
Depending on the temps in your area and the variety, sweet potatoes take 80-100 days to mature with some varieties giving baker size at 60 days. If you're getting impatient, just "noodle" for a few bakers right below the plant and carefully remove them without uprooting the whole plant and try not to take the one attached to the main stem.

I haven't grown them that many times, but I always left them in the ground until the vines started to die back.