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Post by ldc on May 24, 2019 18:39:08 GMT
The people of Japan and Okinawa eat the leaves of sweet potatoes too. Latest nutritional studies suggest it's the leaves that lend longevity!
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Post by shin on Jun 2, 2019 1:53:43 GMT
I've never tried eating the leaves before. I'll have to learn some more about that!
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Post by shin on Jun 2, 2019 1:54:31 GMT
Nice fellow folks know here sent me some sweet potato slips, they arrived safely today. I'll get 'em in the ground soon as I can, they're sitting in an opened bag of topsoil in the meantime.
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Post by feather on Jun 2, 2019 2:06:26 GMT
shin, you're working your way to 102.
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Post by feather on Jun 3, 2019 20:41:53 GMT
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Post by Weed on Jun 5, 2019 13:06:31 GMT
Buddy and I planted over 1000 of those Covington's this year at his certified organic farm. We always have a few left over so...just spreading a little joy 🙂. Too bad they don't grow very well up there in the tundra feather, they make one helluva crop down here!
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Post by feather on Jun 5, 2019 13:59:51 GMT
Weed, I sure hope your crop and shin's do beautifully with lots of sweet potatoes. I double baked a batch this week. Baked, then cooled, peeled, cut in 3/4 inch chunks, then baked again on a silicone mat (silpat) or you can use parchment. No oil needed. They caramelize on the bottom and tops. We're eating them on salads and just to snack on. Delicious.
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Post by shin on Jun 5, 2019 15:35:38 GMT
I was just down at the hardware store picking up a spare bolt, and commenting to the checkout lady that I was growing a lot of sweet potatoes this year and they might even help inhibit cancer.
lol. Most of what I've generously received is in the ground but there're a few slips waiting in the top of a bag of topsoil. They seem to be very happy there, and I wonder if this isn't some webcam homesteading episode in the works, grow your sweet potatoes for easy harvest, just rip off the tops of some bags of topsoil and plunk 'em in there, open up the bags all the way to harvest later, deliver 'em bagged to folks who want their 'natural organic straight from the earth' pots. But seriously I will get them in the ground after some rain softens everything up for digging.
My purple fellows are getting bigger too, I am wondering if I won't try to multiply a few seeing how easy these things seem to grow roots. Life is good, thank God, things are going healthily and happily lately. My blood pressure is even down a bit without medication.
Thanks again Weed!
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Post by feather on Jun 5, 2019 20:45:07 GMT
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Post by Weed on Jun 5, 2019 21:41:23 GMT
These guys need nice sized hilled rows (20" wide at the base x 12" tall) and spacing @ a minimum of 15". Here's what you can expect in mid September...20#clusters that you can lift out like a bunch of bananas
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Post by Woodpecker on Jun 6, 2019 1:20:07 GMT
Very cool...that sure is a big bunch of sweet potatoes.🍌
Thanks or sharing.
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Post by ldc on Jun 20, 2019 20:45:19 GMT
25 years ago, I visited Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. NASA had granted T.I. a grant to grow sweet potatoes, and thought the spuds might be a useful food to grow on the moon w/ greenhouse conditions?! The sweet spuds grown at T.I. looked just like the ones in the above poster WEED's photo, and it looked as if they were growing in pure sparkly white sand!
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Post by feather on Jun 21, 2019 0:26:36 GMT
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Post by feather on Aug 17, 2019 16:04:16 GMT
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Post by Tim Horton on Aug 20, 2019 2:53:46 GMT
Last year we grew some Purple Russian (?) potato. They were a stretch to fit into our short average 55 day season. Not knowing about them they seemed to do well enough, but not as well as our other varieties.
Storing, peeling, cooking they stained everything they touched. We decided not to grow them again.
On special, sweet potatoes here are quite cheap up here. We can some every year.
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Post by shin on Aug 20, 2019 3:17:03 GMT
I didn't know there were such things as purple yams and purple Russian potatoes too. Those Russian ones remind me of blueberries. Well, there sure is a lot of variety out there to explore. I haven't dug up any of my purple sweet potatoes yet, but I think it's about time I tried out harvesting some of the carrots.
I hope the beetles haven't ruined everything underground, the tomato harvest looks like a complete loss this year when it looked like a bumper crop on the beginning. Now I understand better the benefits of green houses.
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Post by Weed on Aug 29, 2019 0:57:38 GMT
shin, I have no advice for the purples but for the Covington's I would suggest digging a cluster to see how they're doing. Yes, it's still early but with all the rain and tropical temps we've had here in the NE, I believe we will be picking sooner than usual. I lifted a cluster from a row end the other day (82 days since setting out slips) and was surprised to see how big a few of them were. The cluster also had 4-5 baby bakers that need a few more weeks to bulk up so I'm figuring to dig them around 9/14. In the meantime, time to setup the curing tunnel.
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Post by Weed on Sept 1, 2019 16:03:15 GMT
shin , if you haven't test dug any yet, here's a pic taken @ 82 days to give you a better idea what's happening underground. The one to the left of my boot heel weighed 1.93#. Plan to dig another one later next week (will be about 92 days) from the other end of the row
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Post by shin on Sept 1, 2019 17:59:32 GMT
Haha, if it looks that good by now here I'll be plenty happy, they didn't establish themselves above ground as flourishing as the purple ones, having had less time, and my soil and care isn't as good as yours I am sure, so I think it likely mine are still small. But I will check them out soon.
The deer have finally gotten in and significantly eaten back both the purples and the oranges the past few days. I am thinking of ways to protect them. So far I tried spraying with neem oil but it didn't discourage the deer, or if it did only for a few days.
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Post by shin on Sept 1, 2019 19:30:23 GMT
I figure since the the other parts of the garden that critters like to eat are done, I'll take down the fence, and then re-fence just the sweet potatoes, make it tight enough the deer won't be able to jump into it.
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Post by Weed on Sept 2, 2019 1:46:27 GMT
shin, Try making up a batch of urine repellant, using Martin's recipe...fill a gallon milk jug most of the way with urine then add a few tablespoons of Louisiana hot sauce w/garlic and let it set out in the sun for about a day or two. Pour it all around the perimeter of your patch (don't spill any on your clothes or boots😬. I made a batch a few years ago that worked so well it kept the deer away for months...I had to bow hunt on my buddy's property that fall All of this year's slips that I sent off to folks, got the treatment. I first trimmed the lower leaves, then planted them for a few days until they began throwing roots & packed them with moist peat around the roots before sending them off. If they stalled after planting you might be right about your soil needing amending, but I think you'll do fine...just may need to let them grow for a few extra weeks to size up. I once left them in until first frost which is around 10/30 here...huge taters! My headsup to you was to help you avoid those 7+# lunkers by digging them while the majority of them are prime sized for a dinner plate The downside to a late harvest is, its much tougher curing in November than it is in mid September.
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Post by feather on Sept 28, 2019 18:08:55 GMT
shin, Your thread has come to mind more often than I can believe. I saw this and wanted to share it because it sounds delicious.
Now isn't that something. It looks really good.
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Post by shin on Sept 28, 2019 20:51:48 GMT
I never thought of something like this, the things people come up with. I like that it uses almond milk and not very much maple syrup, I think I will try this recipe out. Thank you! I just came back from buying some more sweet potatoes and a few other groceries, if I'd read this earlier I'd have picked up almond milk too. I am still just eating my sweet potatoes microwaved and cut in half without anything else. But I do want to try some variations in future so I don't get tired of it. My aunt sent me a recipe for sweet potato lasagna.. that I think sounds like a mistaken combination, personally speaking, but there's this and other possibilities. I went out and cleaned up the garden a bit today, it's still a bit of a mess since near all that's left are some sweet potatoes and carrots, and I let the rest of it go. Not much longer till I dig stuff up, a week or two or three, and God willing have a good harvest. The garden did not give me anything really to eat so far this year overall, so this is the last gasp. The tomatoes all got a blight, the pumpkins and watermelons got something too that swiftly ruined them as soon as they bore. I wonder if I planted them too early too? At least some of the sunflowers made it. But next year, I will go for the mini sunflowers rather than the giants and other varieties, they were healthy and the heads did not keel over but rather lasted quite along time looking fine.
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Post by feather on Sept 28, 2019 21:14:23 GMT
shin, our tomatoes get blight, every year, sometimes one kind, like a fungal one, and other times, like this year with black spots which are a terror to have to shave off. We have the fungicide for the first kind of blight, and the second kind, we have yet to use baking soda dissolved in water to fix that. It's frustrating. We eat the nice cream, made mostly with bananas, but often we add other fruit for color and flavor. It's a nice late night snack that we can eat whenever we want. If you want it richer, add ground nuts, or add blue berries, or strawberries. Lots of choices. I have at least 3 of the 2 cup containers in the freezer so if I or DH want to have a little nice-cream, it's ready to go with a little thawing. I tried to find purple sweet potatoes in the supermarkets here, none to be found. I'll have to try to find some at the most expensive stores, like Sendick's here or maybe we'll find some in our traveling. We also never found a yellow flesh watermelon this whole season and that was kind of a disappointment. Did you know you can easily make almond milk (or oat milk) just by running some water with some almonds (or oats). You CAN make it into a straining deal, straining out the pulp, but you don't have to if you don't want to. For me, the straining things out like that, doesn't improve the nutritional profile. The more fiber the better, just leave it in. The fat content in almonds or any nuts, adds to the nutrition, and so does the fiber. I haven't used nuts to help with more fats in the diet, only because we are watching daily, my blood pressure and DH's heart attack, otherwise, we'd be using them every day. I stopped buying cow's milk some time ago. And this is coming from a cheese maker...crazy change of circumstance and choices. It might just mean that an old dog can do new tricks.
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Post by shin on Sept 28, 2019 21:36:44 GMT
I did not know that.. I will have to try it, I do have some sliced almonds on hand. I keep meaning to make biscotti with them but never get around to it. I have to have a lot of fiber for my health, so that's a good thought there too.
I used to eat a lot of walnuts, but I haven't been able to find the sweet kind lately, though I do think they get a bit sweeter as they get older. Walnuts are a pretty healthy food to eat so I'd like to find them again.
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Post by feather on Sept 28, 2019 21:48:28 GMT
To me, almonds are the best because they are one of the least fatty nuts. But if you pay attention scientific studies to which nuts are best, walnuts are the best. Some people also believe due to other scientific studies, pistachios are the best. They are all good. God made some beautiful things, nuts and berries, top of the list.
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Post by Weed on Sept 29, 2019 15:03:11 GMT
I harvested the Covington's about 2 weeks ago and removed them from the curing tunnel yesterday...now in storage. Nice little harvest of approx 600# from a 60' row. Now keeping a close eye out for our first frost here to get the remaining 1000+ plants dug. shin , since you're a 1st time grower, north of me and your taters are still in the ground, check out the 2nd paragraph under "When to harvest". What the article doesn't explain is how fast it all happens...within hours of thawing the vines will be black slime garden.org/learn/articles/view/581/
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Post by shin on Sept 29, 2019 16:01:16 GMT
Sounds like you've got a fine lot up and more to look forwards to alright! Thanks again.
Looks like my first frost could be late next month. Since I have a two story house the upstairs gets nice and warm compared to the downstairs, I'll cure them up there when they're dug up, then bring them downstairs to keep.
By the way, is it time to plant saffron?
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Post by Weed on Sept 29, 2019 17:30:44 GMT
Sounds like you've got a fine lot up and more to look forwards to alright! Thanks again. Looks like my first frost could be late next month. Since I have a two story house the upstairs gets nice and warm compared to the downstairs, I'll cure them up there when they're dug up, then bring them downstairs to keep. By the way, is it time to plant saffron? Thanks for the reminder....yes, it's the perfect time to get them planted. Plant them @ 6" centers about 4" deep. They flower quickly after planting, usually within a month. When they're ready, wait for the morning dew to dry, pluck the red stigma threads with a pair of tweezers and lay them onto a piece of paper. In a day or 2 they should be dry enough to store/use. I keep mine in an old altoids type tin. Sounds like a good plan for the SPs, hope you get a nice crop!
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Post by shin on Oct 6, 2019 14:56:20 GMT
Well, we weren't due frost here, but I guess it doesn't have to go down that low to blacken the sweet potatoe leaves. From what I understand that means time to get them dug up!
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