Sweet potatoes are grown from slips that commonly sprout from an existing sweet potato plant. You can make slips from the uprooted plants when you have harvested your sweet potatoes. To ensure that the sweet potatoes grow well, rinse them with at least 2 inches of water two days before transplanting the slips. Each slip can produce about 2–6 sweet potatoes, depending on the climatic conditions.
To grow the sweet potato plants in water, you will be required to cut the potato into pieces, and each piece should have at least two sprouting eyes facing up. Suspend a portion of the sweet potato in a jar or vase of water. The piece of potato submerged in water will act as a source of nutrients for the growing plants. After some weeks, the potato will develop roots under the water, and the vine will start growing from the sprouted eyes.
The sweet potatoes grown in water will take around 80–120 days to be ready for harvest. It is best to harvest them when the potato is large enough to eat. When growing sweet potatoes in water, you should avoid keeping the sweet potato plant’s leaves wet since it can cause blighting of the potato and can also cause the potato to rot.
Can a Sweet Potato Plant Live in Water?
Yes. Sweet potato plants can live in water from the time of planting to the time of harvesting. When a sweet potato is submerged in water for 10–15 days, it will start developing roots under the water.
The sweet potato vines will start growing in the next 3–5 weeks after planting. When you plant the potato, ensure the sprout is facing up. You can plant a whole sweet potato, or you can cut it into pieces, where you will be required to ensure each piece has an eye facing upward.
Can You Cut a Sweet Potato in Half and Grow it in Water?
Yes. You can cut the sweet potato plant in half or quarters to increase watering, as long as each piece has at least two eyes facing up. The submerged portion will absorb water and act as a nutrient for the potato plants, enabling them to develop roots underwater.
The portion of the sweet potato planted in water is usually small, and it won’t produce large tubers.
How Long Will a Sweet Potato Grow in Water?
The sweet potato growing in water time lapse ranges between 6 and 10 weeks for a wholly grown potato. Sweet potatoes are grown in water and are usually small with fewer tubers because there are not enough nutrients in the water since there is no soil. When the potato plants are kept in water for a long time, the roots might rot in the water.
Some people are worried about the vase’s water; maybe they can smell it, but not absolutely. During this time, the sweet potato will not smell in water because the skin of the sweet potato is waterproof and covered with tiny pores that prevent excess water from entering the potato and being absorbed into the cells.
The water in the vases should be changed when it turns brown.
How Long Can You Keep Sweet Potato Slips in Water?
Sweet potato slips can be left in water for around 13–17 days after being removed from the sweet potato stem and placed directly in the water.
When the slips are kept out of water, they may dry out and need more water before planting. They should stay in the water until they start developing roots.
How to Keep Sweet Potato Slips
The other way to keep sweet potato slips is to temporarily plant them in the soil. This is mainly done when it does not support the growth of sweet potatoes. You will be required to transfer the slips to the respective garden to transplant the slips.
When you move the slips from the temporary planting, they will grow faster since some leaves will support the slip to grow well, and it might take about a week to develop the roots.
The planted sweet potato slips should be kept away from direct sunlight and away from children if you keep the vase of water at home.
To keep the sweet potatoes from drying out, rinse the slips every two weeks. To avoid rooting the sweet potatoes, change the old water in a vase or jar at least every week.
How Long Does It Take for Sweet Potatoes to Grow Roots in Water?
Sweet potato slips can take around ten days to grow roots in water. After these days, the sweet potato slip will sprout on them and then develop some roots in the water. As the roots in the water are wet, it will take almost five weeks for the vines to explode and cover the ground with foliage.
Growing sweet potato slips in water has been an effective way of growing potatoes in tropical climates. A few farmers are trying to soak the potato slips, which is unnecessary since they will introduce some crispier ones. Soaking sweet potatoes should be done only in cold water to enable them to release the starch.
How to Soak Sweet Potato Slips
To soak the sweet potato slips, combine water and salt in a jar and mix them well until the salt dissolves. Soak the sweet potato slips in water for about 5 hours, then remove them from the water and place them in water to grow.
Some people soak the potato slips in a sugar solution, which helps them avoid soaking in a lot of grease.
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