question about sweet potato beauregard

help!!! i have never grown sweet potatoes...or hardly any veggies for that matter and I have been given 3 beauregard plants that i was told came from wal mart. i know its not a lot but for me it is...hahahaha!

i love sweet potatoes and would really LOVE to be successful in this new adventure.
i have limited space...is it a crazy idea to grow these in some sort of large container?
trash can with lots of drainage holes or a whiskey barrel or something.
i could trellis the vines like I do everything else. I have my other veggies in earthboxes (tomatoes, peppers, and cukes) but I don't think they would work in them. I think they would end up rotting or the box would not be deep enough maybe?

if i do end up putting them in the ground..somewhere....what soil ammendments are needed? anything special? my yard is all south carolina concrete...i mean clay....

i would like to get these planted this weekend so any info all you wonderful veggie people could give would be great. any ideas appreciated.

one other thing....i am not grasping the "curing" thing. i understand it is needed in order to store them but not sure how or why it works. why it needs to be 80 degrees to cure. if I dig these up in october what will be the best way for me to cure these if weather is not cooperating?

thanks for all your help!

Beauregard is a very popular cultivar that is easy to grow. It is the one most often sold in Supermarkets.

Sweet potatoes demand only two things, Heat ( which You have plenty of in South Carolina) and space. The vines will run six to 8 feet and prefer to sprawl on the ground.

They should do ok in an earth box, using the same technique Tplant uses for watermelons. A raised bed would also do fine. They are not particular about soil, I currently grow them in sand, but have grown them in Piedmont red clay. You do need to work the soil into a loose condition about 12 inches and about 4 sqare ft per plant. They are not heavy feeders so any type of compost can be used to condition the soil.

I cure them the traditional way. Dig them the first of October. Wash them , let them lie in the sun for several days, put them in baskets, and store in a shed until cold weather at which time, I bring the ones I am going to keep through the winter inside. They keep pretty well, especially the larger ones. I still have viable potatoes from last year. The finger size ones tend to dry up. but I usually use those early.

thanks for the great info and quick reply! i am always astounded by how much knowledge you have.

i know tplant grows everything in EB's...wonder if he has tried sweet potatoes?? curious how many to put in each box. i will try one in a box (want it to have plenty of room) , will try one in a big whiskey barrel, and i will find a home for one in the ground somewhere. this is gonna be fun! thanks again