Edible sweet potatoes produce beautiful vines, perfect for containers. The added bonus? Sweet potatoes! (Maria Shilaos)
SALT LAKE CITY — Many savvy gardeners use ornamental sweet potato vines as a trailing accent in their planters and container gardens. But did you know that edible varieties also produce a beautiful vine?
Edible varieties can provide a wonderful spiller for your summer containers, while at the same time producing a fall crop of sweet potatoes that are both delicious and high in vitamins.
There are several varieties of sweet potatoes to choose from that perform well in Utah.
In a recently filmed video for the KSL Greenhouse Show, Horticulture Assistant Professor for Utah State University Extension Sheriden Hansen called it “double duty.”
She said not only are edible sweet potatoes prolific growers, “They are beautiful. They trellis, they hang.” But they can also be a part of your vegetable crop rather than just a “throwaway ornamental” at the end of the growing season.
Hansen says sweet potatoes are also a great item to plant for food storage purposes. When cured properly, these homegrown tubers can be enjoyed for months after the growing season.
These tips will be useful if you are harvesting your sweet potato.
To learn more about food storage, visit Be Ready Utah.