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Post by steev on Jun 15, 2017 20:47:39 GMT -5
They're taking no responsibility? Cheesy, that.
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Post by mjc on Jun 15, 2017 21:00:39 GMT -5
They're taking no responsibility? Cheesy, that. The postal service take responsibility? I'm not quite sure that there has been enough snowfall in Hell for that to happen... |
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Post by prairiegardens on Jun 16, 2017 5:30:03 GMT -5
It's a combination imo, they should have included a tracking number when they told me they'd been sent. All they said was that it could take up to ELEVEN DAYS to get here from Ontario, which is longer than it took the pony express to cross the entire US. That should have been a red flag of course, in the January euphoria of finding someplace in Canada that actually sold sp slips of different named varieties I ignored it. The post office lying about notifying me though, could have been short circuited if they'd sent a tracking number. I was checking the post office daily, with a tracking number it would have kept them honest, if I hadn't finally got one I might still be waiting.
They were packed badly too, the box was sodden at the bottom and along one side. They will probably delete it but I blasted them on their FB page when they were clearly not interested in any sort of replacement or even an apology.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 16, 2017 21:26:29 GMT -5
PG, I know the feeling when they arrive like that. That's how they looked the very first time I ever seen one. We assumed that it was normal. I'm not certain how many survived but it was probably not all of them. Only had them in bad shape one time since and that from Steele. Shipped on Thursday of a hot Memorial Day weekend. They did not look good but most survived.
Martin
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Post by prairiegardens on Jun 29, 2017 2:52:11 GMT -5
I've ended up with only the three I thought would make it finally putting out any new growth, three more that are trying hard to grow but so far no new stem or leaf growth, just a white root or two telling me they're still alive, the rest were all truly dead. I started some from a grocery store sweet potato and what there is will be planted tomorrow in tubs so they can be moved under plastic later in the feeble hope they might be able to produce some sort of harvest. None of the survivors were the two rarer varieties, all are Covington, which is probably what the store potato is anyway. I'm grumpy. Not even an apology from the seller.
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Post by reed on Jun 29, 2017 4:54:19 GMT -5
They can look pretty bad and still be alive. I would go ahead and plant any that have the white roots, just keep them well watered for first few days.
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Post by mskrieger on Oct 2, 2017 10:43:18 GMT -5
I'm reporting back: My sweet potatoes did admirably. All the slips that survived (most of the 'All Purples' died, for some reason) produced big nests of tubers. They were very variably shaped though. All had at least one large tuber, some of them several, but they all had small tubers too...is this pretty typical? I did space them too far apart. Next year I'll do every 15". And I'll deeply dig the row as paquebot suggests. Obviously worth it in my soil and climate, and this not even a warm year. |
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Post by mskrieger on Oct 2, 2017 10:47:00 GMT -5
Also I could see how planting them in containers might be worth it--it's hard to find all the tubers in the big chaotic patch of vines covered in purple flowers! Breaks my heart to chop them up but it's October and nighttime temperatures are dropping into the 40s. It was definitely time to harvest. (My gardens are probably more chaotic than most though...ended up planting zinnias randomly throughout, thanks to my six year old, and some butterfly weed self seeded. And the sweet potatoes decided since the peppers and eggplants weren't doing anything, it being too cool, they might as well take over that bed as well....)
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Post by aufin on Oct 16, 2017 9:04:21 GMT -5
Question ..... If growing vine type sweets in containers, is there any harm done by keeping the vines under control by keeping them cut back to about 2 feet or so?
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Post by mskrieger on Oct 16, 2017 10:26:31 GMT -5
The vines and leaves fuel the production of the tubers. So if you cut back the vines, you're cutting back your tuber production apparatus....
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Post by aufin on Oct 16, 2017 15:09:23 GMT -5
Kinda thought that might be the case ..... Just had to "hear" it from someone who knows. Guess I'll just keep snatching the vine roots out of the ground.
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Post by reed on Oct 16, 2017 19:18:53 GMT -5
I imagine it depends on the amount of cutting you are doing. I don't think it would hurt to keep them trimmed some, depends on how large your containers are. I have been told by some around these parts that sweets that are eaten back by rabbits or deer often make good roots anyway.
Another option would be shove a couple sticks in the pots and tie the vines up. Any place they start to root they will start to make small storage roots, also taking away form the main crop of larger ones.
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Post by mskrieger on Oct 19, 2017 12:28:24 GMT -5
You can pull the adventitious roots out of the ground, but that denies the vines secondary sources of nutrients (and water). That's part of what makes sweet potatoes such a productive, low-demand crop. (And I know we're discussing growing them in pots but if you're going to grow them in the earth, you might as well use the advantages of that location!)
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Post by mskrieger on Oct 19, 2017 12:29:32 GMT -5
hm reed, just saw your comment. Do the secondary roots really take away from the main ones? Seems like they would aid in making the plants drought and insect resistant...is there any research on this? |
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Post by steev on Oct 19, 2017 17:03:44 GMT -5
I think he's saying it's not the feeder roots, but the puny storage roots the secondary roots try to produce; I agree that tying the plants up would be the most productive.
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