Recently, more and more often on personal plots, morning glory sweet potatoes are grown. This attractive climbing plant is fast growing and produces tasty edible tubers on its root system. A novice gardener can also grow a sweet potato. The main thing is to adhere to the basic rules of plant care.
In our climate, the plant needs to be propagated by seedlings. For this, the seeds of the culture are sown in late January – early February. But first, the planting material must be scarified or kept in warm water for a day. For seeds, prepare a soil mixture consisting of equal parts of humus, turf and sand. Remember to heat the substrate in the oven before sowing.
Morning glory sweet potato is not only a beautiful, but also a useful plant.
The seeds go deep into moist soil to a depth of 1,5-2 cm. The crops should be covered with foil or glass and placed in a well-lit, warm place.
Provide the seedlings with the usual care, consisting of temperature control and periodic watering. When the seedlings grow up to 15 cm, start hardening them. To do this, remove the plants to fresh air, gradually increasing the duration of the procedure.
You can plant a crop in open ground when the air temperature is set within + 20 ° C. For the plant, choose a lighted, wind-protected area with sandy loam and loam. It is advisable to enrich the soil with ammonium nitrate before planting.
The plant is unpretentious, but in order to achieve root crops, you will need to pay some attention to it. Basic rules of care:
- Liana does not tolerate both drought and stagnation of moisture in the roots. Therefore, provide her with regular, but moderate watering.
- The plant responds well to feeding. Fertilize sweet potatoes with complex mineral preparations during active growth. But during the budding period, avoid nitrogen fertilization. In mid-August, feed the sweet potato with potash or wood ash.
- Do not forget to loosen and weed the beds after watering.
- In the second half of August, stick to the top of the culture. Thanks to this event, the tubers will become larger.
Ipomoea can be harvested at the end of September. But you should finish with the harvesting work before the onset of frost. Therefore, be guided by the weather conditions in your region.
It will not be difficult to grow a tasty and healthy sweet potato in your garden. It is enough to provide the culture with a minimum of attention and care, and then it will certainly please with a good harvest of tubers.