Post by macmex on Nov 9, 2021 18:55:42 GMT
One of the greatest challenges in sweet potato presevation is that every variety needs to be grown out every year in order to keep it going. At first thought, this may not seem all that difficult. Back when we only grew two varieties it didn't seem so difficult, but over the years we've accumulated more varieties than I would normally have, due to sales and swaps, etc. Once I reached 12 varieties thingd began to get more challenging. For one thing, it became all to easy to mix varieties inadvertently. I've had to be pretty strict about labeling and avoiding planting similar varieties side by side. I try to put differently colored roots side by side to avoid confusion.
Some years we've had rodent issues. In spite of planting a minimum of six of each variety, there have been years we barely harvested enough for "seed" for the coming year. It seems impossible to predict bad rodent years, though I can definitely say that if you want rodents to eat your crop, just wait until the weather truly cools down before harvesting. With some cool, rainy days and nights rodent go into high gear, looking for roots to devour.
Sandhill Preservation Center lost, perhaps a hundred varieties, only days after planting, because of a fluke storm which literally tore the plants and their mulch out of the ground. Such a thing "would never happen" here in Oklahoma!
This year I had health issues and struggled mightily to get my garden planted. It was only after I was 75% through the harvest that I discovered I had neglected to plant any slips of White Eclipse, which is a very rare variety. I was horrified, but then comforted as I thought to recover the roots I used to produce slips. When I looked for them I found they were either rotted or eaten by rodents There were no roots left! Instead, I found some vines, which had rooted beside the starting tray. I cut three slips and rooted them into a 6" pot. Now I have them under lights and hope to plant from them in 2022.
The pot on the right is White Eclipse, showing its distintive extra round shaped leaves.
In my hurry I only planted two slips of Beccas Purple, which is normally a heavy producer. Yet when I harvested I found that for some reason, both plants fizzled. Going to my starting trays I found two good roots, then looking in my bins from last year's harvest, I found several more. So, I set them all aside. We should be good.
This is a photo of a year old root of Brinkley White. In a pinch it would work well for saving "seed" for the coming year.
Another safeguard is to SHARE stock with friends and neighbors. Can't emphasize how important it is to do this! Also, when sharing, keep a written record of those with whom you have shared. AND encourage folk to come to the Sweet Potato Network to touch base with one another. This site has only barely begun to function in this important regard. That's the main reason "Network" is in the name!
Have you lost and/or found a variety?
Do you have a good way to safeguard against loss? We'd love to hear about it!
Some years we've had rodent issues. In spite of planting a minimum of six of each variety, there have been years we barely harvested enough for "seed" for the coming year. It seems impossible to predict bad rodent years, though I can definitely say that if you want rodents to eat your crop, just wait until the weather truly cools down before harvesting. With some cool, rainy days and nights rodent go into high gear, looking for roots to devour.
Sandhill Preservation Center lost, perhaps a hundred varieties, only days after planting, because of a fluke storm which literally tore the plants and their mulch out of the ground. Such a thing "would never happen" here in Oklahoma!
This year I had health issues and struggled mightily to get my garden planted. It was only after I was 75% through the harvest that I discovered I had neglected to plant any slips of White Eclipse, which is a very rare variety. I was horrified, but then comforted as I thought to recover the roots I used to produce slips. When I looked for them I found they were either rotted or eaten by rodents There were no roots left! Instead, I found some vines, which had rooted beside the starting tray. I cut three slips and rooted them into a 6" pot. Now I have them under lights and hope to plant from them in 2022.
The pot on the right is White Eclipse, showing its distintive extra round shaped leaves.
In my hurry I only planted two slips of Beccas Purple, which is normally a heavy producer. Yet when I harvested I found that for some reason, both plants fizzled. Going to my starting trays I found two good roots, then looking in my bins from last year's harvest, I found several more. So, I set them all aside. We should be good.
This is a photo of a year old root of Brinkley White. In a pinch it would work well for saving "seed" for the coming year.
Another safeguard is to SHARE stock with friends and neighbors. Can't emphasize how important it is to do this! Also, when sharing, keep a written record of those with whom you have shared. AND encourage folk to come to the Sweet Potato Network to touch base with one another. This site has only barely begun to function in this important regard. That's the main reason "Network" is in the name!
Have you lost and/or found a variety?
Do you have a good way to safeguard against loss? We'd love to hear about it!
