I decided to drown my sorrows in uprooting my sweet potato plants that I had growing in containers in the front walk. EG pulled his up this last weekend, so I figured mine would be pretty good to go. I decided to do two things different this year and plant some in very large containers and then trim the vines as they got too large.
The pots certainly were large, but since the sweet potatoes grow towards the surface, having that much depth really wasn't necessary. I'm thinking I may use the pots for bell peppers next year instead. A lot of this will depend on how the sweet potatoes look in the main garden and if I'll grow them there next year, instead.
Anyway, I looked at the first pot which looked pretty sad since it hadn't been watered this week.
I started digging and found one or two good sized sweet potatoes which made me very happy. I then said, "Ah, why not?" and pulled up the second pot. All in all, this was the take:
I don't know how many pounds it is, but it all looked pretty good to me. We had some for dinner and they were yummy. Still don't know quite what to do with those little fingerling ones.I also pulled some more jalapenos and basil to put out in the faculty workroom tomorrow for the taking. The jalapenos are hiding under the basil.
Hopefully the basil will keep overnight in the fridge. We'll see if I wind up taking it to school or not. It was already looking a bit droopy by this evening.So, all in all, it wasn't too bad of a day. Yes, the chard was a disappointment, but the sweet potatoes worked out well and I still have a whole other plot to dig up in the corner yard, so I'll be rocking in sweet potatoes for some time to come. I may actually put some of those out at school as well because we'll never go through all of them before they sprout.
The morning comes early. Sweet basil, and sweet potato dreams. Separately of course.
That's amazing! It seems like a lot of bloggers are have really good luck with sweet potatoes this year. Yet another thing I need to try in 2011.
ReplyDeleteThe sweet potatoes look yummy! It's a lot of work to peel the little ones and then cook and puree them, but I bet they'll taste good.
ReplyDeleteHere's a thought on how to protect the transplants from the critters -- make a sort of cloche for them out of chicken wire or hardware cloth, and kind of fold it over at the top. Use ground staples to attach it to the ground. Maybe it will be too much work for them to dig under to get to them, and they will have time to grow bigger. Just an idea.
Well at least you had a good sweet potato harvest. Sometimes I think I should grow everything under a row cover. That would keep the critters out.
ReplyDeleteheehee- think EG will lone you his trap? Loosk like you might need it!
ReplyDeleteYou did well with the sweet potatoes in containers! I think you should have done a video of the harvest, but that's just me..ha. I'm thinking of what to do with the little taters too, and may just give them to jude....
ReplyDeletedon't feel bad, apparently my new source of lettuce is seedlings - duh, why don't I just go to the store it would be a whole lot cheaper :)
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone. Some sort of covering would be best. I really wonder if it's the whole transplants vs. direct seeding that has they itching to dig up the transplants because they're leaving the direct seeded things alone.
ReplyDeleteI may have to plant some more by seed once it cools down. It's still in the mid 90's during the day here. It's unamerican,I tell you.
EG, the film was going to be made, but the boy said he didn't want to, so it didn't. However, it would have been a good one. The pots were teeming with red ants. However, I didn't notice it until I was in there up to my elbows...as were the ants. Not fun.