Post by macmex on Oct 4, 2021 14:28:32 GMT
Almost every year I say that I will get my sweet potatoes harvested BEFORE October. There are a couple of reasons for this. Firstly, in our locale the really warm temperatures have generally ended by October. With cool nights sweet potatoes won't put on any noticeable amount of weight, even if days are warm. Secondly, it's very helpful to be able to cure the newly harvested roots in a WARM place before storing them for the winter. When I wait until October, it's often challenging to find a warm enough place to cure the roots before storing them. Thirdly, in our locale, there's always a time when the weather makes a definitive change, from warm to cold/cool. Suddenly we get cold soaking rains which really cool down our soil temps. Even if frost is still weeks away, I'm convinced that the cooler soil temps affect the sweet potato roots' storage quality. So... I always say I want them all harvested by October.
Maybe next year...
Last night I dug my first four plants. I start at the far end of the row, so, if I desire, I can still irrigate during the days that I'll be digging. I was glad I did, as I found the ground hard and too dry. With my soil, if it's dry, it's almost impossible to dig. But, dig, I did. I managed four plants during chore time, using the vines to feed goats and rabbits. The animals were euphoric about this!
We have a new livestock guardian dog puppy, named Sensei. "Training" one of these dogs involves letting him tag along while I do chores, encouraging him in what is good and teaching him what not to do, especially in regard to our other animals. Sensei is about 16 weeks old now and weighs about 37 lb. He's a BIG floppy, goofy pup. Anyway, since I was in chore time I invited him into the garden. This is about the only time I could do this and remain relaxed as this big pup pranced and played in my sweet potato patch, I'd cut the vines off a plant and haul them to the wheelbarrow. Sensei would be right there, getting hold of a vine and playing tug war. When I dug, he too would dig!
Doing this kind of work with a pup underfoot is about on par with working with a toddler, but I do it for the same reason I'd do it with a toddler. I want this dog to grow up to be my friend and companion, my helper and defender. While we're working on it, we'll enjoy him as a "baby." Okay, so I did have to rescue a root or two!
The first 14 plants in this row are Red Wine Velvet, my wife's favorite variety. This is a typical cluster of roots from this variety. There were a few more roots under this one plant, but this is what came up, still attached to the main stem.
Observation: I had two 80' rows irrigated by drip tape. The far end of the first row was too dry. This means that I didn't water long enough when I watered. More water escapes closer to where it enters the tape than at the end. I was watering 8 hours, which has always worked before. But this time, I had TWO 80' lines attached to the same fixture, so I probably should have run that irrigation for 15 or 16 hours each time. I'm glad the roots were still of decent size If the irrigation had been better, they would probably have been twice the size on average. As I get toward the other end of the row I expect that yields will be higher.
I harvested nearly a 5 gallon bucket of roots, all around the 1-2 lb range in weight. That's alright. That's the size most people prefer too. I tend to favor larger roots, just because I want more actual yield.
I'm glad our temperatures have been slow to drop this season. This year I also have an empty greenhouse to use for curing. Daytime temps in the greenhouse should still hit 100 F., no problem I spread the roots on a shelf and will box them up in about two days, storing them in a room in our house which never drops below 50 F. during the winter.
Lord willing I will be digging about this many roots, every evening for the next two weeks. We'll see how we go. I'll be feeding the vines to our livestock and keeping an eye peeled for any mature seed pods I might find.
Maybe next year...
Last night I dug my first four plants. I start at the far end of the row, so, if I desire, I can still irrigate during the days that I'll be digging. I was glad I did, as I found the ground hard and too dry. With my soil, if it's dry, it's almost impossible to dig. But, dig, I did. I managed four plants during chore time, using the vines to feed goats and rabbits. The animals were euphoric about this!
We have a new livestock guardian dog puppy, named Sensei. "Training" one of these dogs involves letting him tag along while I do chores, encouraging him in what is good and teaching him what not to do, especially in regard to our other animals. Sensei is about 16 weeks old now and weighs about 37 lb. He's a BIG floppy, goofy pup. Anyway, since I was in chore time I invited him into the garden. This is about the only time I could do this and remain relaxed as this big pup pranced and played in my sweet potato patch, I'd cut the vines off a plant and haul them to the wheelbarrow. Sensei would be right there, getting hold of a vine and playing tug war. When I dug, he too would dig!
Doing this kind of work with a pup underfoot is about on par with working with a toddler, but I do it for the same reason I'd do it with a toddler. I want this dog to grow up to be my friend and companion, my helper and defender. While we're working on it, we'll enjoy him as a "baby." Okay, so I did have to rescue a root or two!
The first 14 plants in this row are Red Wine Velvet, my wife's favorite variety. This is a typical cluster of roots from this variety. There were a few more roots under this one plant, but this is what came up, still attached to the main stem.
Observation: I had two 80' rows irrigated by drip tape. The far end of the first row was too dry. This means that I didn't water long enough when I watered. More water escapes closer to where it enters the tape than at the end. I was watering 8 hours, which has always worked before. But this time, I had TWO 80' lines attached to the same fixture, so I probably should have run that irrigation for 15 or 16 hours each time. I'm glad the roots were still of decent size If the irrigation had been better, they would probably have been twice the size on average. As I get toward the other end of the row I expect that yields will be higher.
I harvested nearly a 5 gallon bucket of roots, all around the 1-2 lb range in weight. That's alright. That's the size most people prefer too. I tend to favor larger roots, just because I want more actual yield.
I'm glad our temperatures have been slow to drop this season. This year I also have an empty greenhouse to use for curing. Daytime temps in the greenhouse should still hit 100 F., no problem I spread the roots on a shelf and will box them up in about two days, storing them in a room in our house which never drops below 50 F. during the winter.
Lord willing I will be digging about this many roots, every evening for the next two weeks. We'll see how we go. I'll be feeding the vines to our livestock and keeping an eye peeled for any mature seed pods I might find.
? Maybe the cooler weather I don't know???
