Making My Own Sweet Potato Slips

 This is something my in-laws told me how to do and I have done so for years, I don’t think I’ve ever shared the process in detail though. 

If you just leave a sweet potato on the counter, or in storage somewhere, it will usually start to sprout all on its own. You can just break off these sprouts when they get a couple/three inches long. Put the sprouts in an inch or so of water, not fully submerged, just to where it will have room to form roots.

Like so:


 They love full sun, so keep it in a sunny window.   

If you want to get a sweet potato to start sprouting, then just put one in water in a sunny window and wait for it to sprout.  


There is really no need to use toothpicks to support the tuber, unless you just want to. It will start rooting after a while, then start sending off sprouts, or slips as they are also called.  

Wait til they are long enough, break off and put in water.  

After they have a bunch of roots you can plant them.  They may die back a bit after being set out, but unless it frosts and freezes them, or unless bugs eat them down, they will recover. I’ve found that they are hard to kill. 

A friend grows them in large flower pots on her front deck. The beautiful vines are decorative and then in the fall she has sweet taters enough for the holidays.  






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