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Sweet Potatoes — Ipomoea batatas

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Sweet Potatoes — Ipomoea batatas

layout: base.njk title: Sweet Potatoes description: Growing Sweet Potatoes in West Virginia (Zone 6b/7a) category: warm-season

Quick Reference: See detailed growing information below

Type: Annual (perennial in tropics)
Family: Convolvulaceae (Morning Glory)
Sun: Full sun (6-8+ hours)
Water: Moderate (1" per week; reduce near harvest)
Soil pH: 5.8-6.2 (prefers slightly acidic soil)
Hardiness: Annual (frost-tender, heat-loving)

🌱 Expected Yield

  • Per plant: 2-5 lbs (varies greatly by variety and season length)
  • Per 10' row: 20-50 lbs (8-10 plants)
  • Notes: Sweet potatoes need long, warm growing season—challenging but possible in Zone 6b/7a. Black plastic mulch essential for soil warming. Yield increases with longer season. Harvest before first frost damages tubers. Cure after harvest for sweetness and storage.

🏺 Heirloom Varieties

'Beauregard'

  • Source: Multiple seed companies; often sold as slips from specialized growers
  • Days: 90 days
  • Notes: Orange-fleshed. Louisiana State University release (1987). Standard commercial variety. Reliable in Zone 6. Sweet, moist flesh. Reddish skin. Most widely grown variety in South.

'Georgia Jet'

  • Source: Baker Creek (rareseeds.com), Southern Exposure (southernexposure.com), slip growers
  • Days: 90 days
  • Notes: Orange-fleshed. Red-purple skin. Very fast maturing—best for short seasons. Sweet, moist. Reliable producer in Zone 6. Heat-tolerant. Standard for northern sweet potato growers.

'Covington'

  • Source: Slip growers, North Carolina State University
  • Days: 90 days
  • Notes: Orange-fleshed. NC State release. Similar to Beauregard. Reddish skin. Sweet, moist. Good disease resistance. Reliable in Zone 6.

'O'Henry'

  • Source: Baker Creek, slip growers
  • Days: 90 days
  • Notes: White-fleshed. Golden skin. Dry, sweet potato flavor (less sweet than orange varieties). Good for those who prefer traditional sweet potato taste. Reliable producer.

'Murasaki'

  • Source: Baker Creek, Asian seed companies
  • Days: 95 days
  • Notes: Japanese variety. Purple skin, white flesh. Dry, chestnut-like texture. Sweet but not moist. Good for roasting. Beautiful color. Requires warm season.

'Hannah'

  • Source: Baker Creek, Southern Exposure
  • Days: 95 days
  • Notes: White-fleshed. Tan skin. Dry, sweet potato flavor. Good for baking. Reliable producer. Heat-tolerant. Traditional variety.

'Vardaman'

  • Source: Slip growers, Southern Exposure
  • Days: 95 days
  • Notes: Golden-fleshed. Light skin. Sweet, moist. Mississippi State University release. Good for pies. Reliable.

'Centennial'

  • Source: Slip growers
  • Days: 90 days
  • Notes: Orange-fleshed. Reddish skin. Louisiana release. Sweet, moist. Disease resistant. Good yield.

'Carolina Ruby'

  • Source: Slip growers, Baker Creek
  • Days: 90 days
  • Notes: Deep red skin, orange flesh. Sweet, moist. Attractive. Reliable producer. Good storage.

'Porto Rico'

  • Source: Baker Creek, Seed Savers Exchange (seedsavers.org)
  • Days: 95 days
  • Notes: Orange-fleshed. Historic variety. Reddish skin. Sweet, moist. Early 20th century variety. Good flavor.

'Nancy Hall'

  • Source: Seed Savers Exchange, Southern Exposure
  • Days: 100 days
  • Notes: Yellow-fleshed. Historic African-American variety. Light skin. Dry, sweet. Civil War-era variety. Cultural significance. Longer season.

'White Triumph'

  • Source: Baker Creek, Southern Exposure
  • Days: 95 days
  • Notes: White-fleshed. White skin. Dry texture. Sweet potato flavor, less sweet than orange types. Good for savory dishes.

🌾 Seed Saving

Method: Sweet potatoes are not grown from seeds but from slips (rooted sprouts from tubers). To save your own slips:

  1. Choose healthy, disease-free tubers at harvest; select best specimens
  2. Store tubers over winter at 55-60°F, high humidity, dark (root cellar or cool basement)
  3. In March-April, place tubers horizontally in moist sand or sawdust at 80-85°F
  4. Keep moist but not wet; sprouts (slips) will form in 4-6 weeks
  5. When slips reach 6-9" tall, twist off from tuber (do not cut)
  6. Place slips in water to root; roots form in 5-7 days
  7. Plant rooted slips outdoors after soil warms

Note: Tubers may carry disease; for safety, buy certified disease-free slips every few years.

Isolation Distance: - Vegetative propagation: No cross-pollination concerns when propagating from slips - If saving true seed: Sweet potatoes can cross-pollinate; isolation of 1/2 mile needed - Note: For home use, slips from your own tubers maintain variety characteristics

Viability: Slips must be grown fresh each year from stored tubers. Tubers store 4-6 months under proper conditions.

Special Notes: - One tuber produces 10-20 slips - Select tubers for disease resistance, yield, flavor, storage quality - Sweet potatoes cure after harvest—hold at 85-90°F, 85-90% humidity for 10 days - Curing heals wounds and converts starches to sugars (sweeter flavor) - After curing, store at 55-60°F; do not refrigerate (chilling injury) - Properly cured and stored tubers keep 4-6 months

Added to WV Planting Guide 26155 — The Loop Farmstead