[flopsy]

Hi, i'm looking to grow sweet potatoes this year for the first time, i've started as suggested in the blog by suspeding a sweet potatoe in a jar of water held in place by 3 cocktail sticks.
My question is how long dose it take before any roots/shouts show, as i've had this in my windowsill for the past 6 weeks with no growth of any kind.
Cheers Pete

[Trillium]

The fresh one I started last year didn't put any bottom shoots out for 3 months, then another month before top sprouts appeared. It was too late for planting out last year so I held it over for this year.

Growth inhibitors sprayed on for storage could be slowing down progress so just be patient, or, get a potato from a different source and try again. maybe this one won't be sprayed (its impossible to know this beforehand unless the potato was certified organic).

[GYO Girl]

Ooh, I've just read the sticky after reading this post, and this looks like fun!  I have 2 sweet potatoes in the cupboard, is it too late to start them off now?

[Trillium]

Give it a go. Some folk are lucky and the sprouts come within a month.

[JayG]

Ooh, I've just read the sticky after reading this post, and this looks like fun!  I have 2 sweet potatoes in the cupboard, is it too late to start them off now?

Try soaking them in a bucket of cold water for 24 hours before suspending in water - I did this last year and mine started rooting within a fortnight, with the first "chit" appearing a week later (this year a saved tuber from last year showed the first sign of roots within a week and the first chit shortly after!) 

The "theory" is that soaking will remove any anti-sprouting chemicals it might have been sprayed with, but I can't guarantee that this will always work (it could be I was just lucky with the variety), but it certainly worked for me! 

[allotment south wales]

if you are stuck and cant get them growing in time  suttons have a turbo grafted range of plants availible at most garden centers in april / may including sweet potatoes  Beauregard ..

do not buy direct £9   at garden center on offer £3.99

do use slug control or pellets

as our crop in 2011 in the polytunnel 45 % for the slugs 55% for us...