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Post by macmex on Feb 22, 2022 16:24:18 GMT
Well, I'm looking forward another year of experimenting with sweet potato seed. I was hesitant to start any more, as there are so many "lines in the water," so to speak, that it's hard to keep up with everything. But yesterday I dug up some seed which June (active member here) sent me last fall. It's from Kaukura Sweet which is an ornamental/edible variety with some real promise. It's gorgeous but also quite expensive and it's plant variety patented, which means the only way to propagate and sell it is to pay a very very hefty fee. I never grow a plant variety long term if it is is patented as I want to own the material I'm growing and be able to do with it as I please.
Years ago I read Breed Your Own Vegetable Varieties by Carol Deppe. I'd highly recommend the book. Carol had so much to share about home breeding and did so in a wonderful manner. One thing she pointed out is that with most patented varieties it is illegal to propagate them, passing them on to others, but there is no law against using them in ones own breeding experiments. In the times we live, some giant businesses have sought to patent genes. But in the case of most plant variety patents, it's not the genes that are patented, but rather the variety (exact collection of genes and plant material composing a variety). One can use that material to breed new material. That's okay.
So, I'm looking forward to growing some of this seed. I was fairly pleased with Kaukura, though at this point I certainly wouldn't trust it as a main food crop variety. My harvest was only moderate. Its eating quality is pretty good. June noted that her Kaukura plants were right next to Korean Purple, which is a superb variety for eating. When sweet potatoes produce seed, it's my understanding that they always outcross. So this seed should only produce crosses of Kaukura. Most likely they will be crosses between Kaukura and Korean Purple. We'll see what comes of it. I planted 5 or six seeds.
While I was digging up that seed I came across what was left of the 2020 true potato seed from my own garden. I couldn't resist planting five seeds from a packet labeled "Red Wine Velvet or Becca's Purple." I had those two varieties next to each another that year.
Playing around with plant breeding takes lots of time, work and space. So I can't get too intense with this. The good thing is that any rejects will be eaten! Will let you know when the first seedlings appear!
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Post by june on Feb 22, 2022 17:01:00 GMT
I did a test germination of these same seeds last fall (still have the seedlings, but maintaining nearly dormant). Even as young seedlings I could see diversity in the plants. I will be growing additional seedlings of this cross as well as several other crosses. I'm most interested in my Okinawan/Hawaiian cross (limited number of seeds). I don't have a lot of grow out space but will be growing as many homegrown hybrids as I can. I love the diversity and everything will be eaten.
I had a tremendous deer problem last year. Deer kept my vines eaten to the ground. I believe the hardship of 'staying alive' is why my plants produced so many seeds. Starting early, this year I have already built a 4 strand electric fence--there's nothing in my garden for them to want now, so I don't know if it will keep them out or not.
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Post by bulldog on Feb 22, 2022 20:52:09 GMT
You guys are operating far above where I am on them. Still I recognize the tremendous benefit the sweet potato has to our table. They will likely become a bit of a staple here. I had never tried eating the green tops, but will soon get an opportunity to try them.
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Post by macmex on Feb 24, 2022 2:03:59 GMT
Well, once you get going with them you'll learn. It's kind of a cumulative thing. I still marvel that I grew sweet potatoes for something like 40 years before noticing the seed pods! Took me almost as long to try eating the greens, which are really quite good!
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Post by macmex on Feb 24, 2022 17:34:48 GMT
Three days ago I started my seed for 2022. I watered it in, set it on a heat mat and covered the trays with plastic wrap to conserve moisture. I just peeked under the plastic wrap and discovered that some is already sprouting! That's pretty fast. The warmth is what makes them sprout so quickly. So now I have to remove the plastic wrap (to avoid damping off) and keep a good eye on them to be sure they don't dry out.
This is from the Red Wine Velvet or Beccas' Purple seed.
I'm pretty sure I saw a sprout coming up from the Kaukura seed, but it wasn't up enough to take a picture.
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Post by macmex on Mar 2, 2022 23:13:09 GMT
I took these photos this morning. Presently we have seedlings, one from the Kaukura cross and two from Red Wine Velvet or Becca's Purple (am not sure which of the two was the parent plant).
This seedling shows some maroon color. We'll see how it shapes up.
Becca's Purple or RWV
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Post by macmex on Mar 16, 2022 16:51:43 GMT
March 16, 2002 and here's a picture of the Kaukura cross.
We'll see how maroon it turns out in the end. Seems too soon to tell.
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Post by macmex on Mar 23, 2022 0:52:29 GMT
Two days ago I transplanted the three seedlings which had popped up, into their individual pots and then slipped the seed trays into plastic bags on top of a heat mat. Sure enough, the extra heat was enough to get more germination. Today I found this second seedling from a Kaukura cross.
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Post by macmex on Mar 24, 2022 12:55:43 GMT
Here's a picture of the first Kaukura cross seedling, as of March 23. Its new leaves start out green and then turn bronze.
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Post by macmex on Apr 7, 2022 12:13:06 GMT
April 6 and this is what the Kaukura Cross seedling looks like. It's really hard for me to guess what it will look like when in full swing, out in the garden.
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Post by macmex on Apr 18, 2022 13:00:23 GMT
When a sweet potato is in the 1st generation seedling stage it is vulnerable. For one thing, there's a probability that it won't pan out as worthwhile keeping. Even if it's going to be a superstar, no one yet knows it, so it's easy to relax and let one get lost or die. This particular seedling looks to have all kinds of potential, so I'm kind of attached to it. Here's what it looked like April 16 in the morning.
I set it and some other seedlings outside, by the greenhouse. Spider mites can get going in the greenhouse, which cause sweet potato vines to look bad. It's easy, however, to prevent them. Just set the plants outside where there are weeds, as long as temperatures are warm. The local lady bugs clean off any spider mites, keeping the plants healthy.
However, there are risks when placing tender young plants outside. Here's a photo of the same plant about 9 hours later.
I thought perhaps we had a rabbit hiding under the greenhouse, who had snuck out during the day and nipped off my plants. Our cat hangs out in the garden, so I was a little surprised. Still, I figured this was what had happened.
The next day, as we were about to eat lunch, I looked out the window and watched three of our goats slip RIGHT THROUGH the garden fence and make a beeline for my plants! I ran out there and extracted the goats before they could cause much more damage. The wire connecting two panels of the fence had come loose and one of our goats is a genius. She figured out that she could push the panels apart and gain access to the smorgasbord, garden. She was generous and helped a couple friends come in too!
Fortunately, I believe all of the plants they damaged will yet recover.
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Post by june on Apr 18, 2022 13:40:36 GMT
Beautiful little plant George. It will come back in no time as soon as the weather warms up a little. The deer ate mine back repeatedly last year and as long as there is anything is left, it will bounce back. I always start too early and get frustrated when everything just sits there for a month. I'm waiting until its really warm enough to put them out this year.
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Post by macmex on Apr 18, 2022 17:53:12 GMT
Agreed. It's too early to set the plants out to stay. I just set these out temporarily in order to avoid spider mite problems.
I have one more Kaukura seedling growing in the greenhouse but it shows no sign of red coloring in the leaves.
I do hope to get my slips in the ground in a more timely manner than last year. Maybe that way I'll also see some seed production.
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Post by macmex on May 5, 2022 18:59:01 GMT
This seedling is coming back now, just as June said it would.
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Post by macmex on Jun 27, 2022 13:31:45 GMT
This one got set out with four other seedlings (all started from seed this year) on May 21. Of all the seedlings I started this year, only this one shows maroon coloring. The leaves are shaped differently than Kaukura and the coloring may not be as intense. We'll see as it grows. The plant has really started to sprawl.
Here's a photo of Kaukura Sweet from last year.
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