Plant field guide
Sweet Potato
Heat-loving root vegetable that produces bountiful harvests of sweet, nutritious tubers. Attractive trailing vines also serve as ornamental ground cover. Beaujolais and purple varieties add visual interest.
Growing requirements
- Scientific name
- Ipomoea batatas
- Sun
- full sun
- Water
- moderate
- Height
- 12 in (30 cm) – 18 in (46 cm)
- Spread
- 36 in (91 cm) – 72 in (183 cm)
- Spacing
- 12 in (30 cm)
- Hardiness zones & minimum temperature
- USDA 5–11; average annual extreme minimum from -20°F (-28.9°C). Hardiness does not predict local frost dates.
- Difficulty
- easy
Planting & seasonal timing
Northern Hemisphere planting months: not yet verified in our database.
Northern Hemisphere pruning months: no calendar months recorded.
For the Southern Hemisphere, these seasonal windows shift approximately six months. Check your local frost forecast, soil temperature, and species requirements; calendar months are not a guarantee of planting safety.
Grow from slips (rooted sprouts), not seeds. Needs 90-120 warm days. Plant after soil warms to 65F. Cure harvested tubers at 80-85F for 10 days for sweetest flavor. Store in a cool, dark place.
Pruning
No pruning needed. Trim vine tips if spreading too far.
Fertilizer
Low nitrogen, high potassium
At planting only; too much fertilizer produces vines not tubers
Mulch
Black plastic mulch to warm soil in cooler zones.