Ipomoea batatas (Sweet potato)

Botanical name

Ipomoea batatas

Other names

Sweet potato

Genus

Ipomoea Ipomoea

Species

I. batatas - I. batatas is a vining annual grown for its edible, elongated tubers with sweet orange flesh.

Foliage

Deciduous

Habit

Climbing

---

Colour

Flower

White, Purple-pink in Summer

Foliage

Green in Summer

---

How to care

Watch out for

Specific pests

Glasshouse red spider mite , Glasshouse whitefly , Sweet potato weevil

General care

Pruning

Train them up strings - to give them more light and stop them rooting everywhere.

Propagation methods

Root plantlets, Softwood cuttings

---

Monthly care advice

---

Where to grow

Ipomoea batatas (Sweet potato) will reach a height of 3m and a spread of 1m after 1-2 years.

Suggested uses

Add to salads, Greenhouse, Sub-Tropical

Cultivation

As a semi-tropical plant, sweet potatoes require hot conditions to grow. Plant rooted sprouts into ordinary, sandy compost and grow in a propagator. Once growing strongly pot out in grow on in the greenhouse. Requires a lot of watering.

Soil type

Chalky, Loamy, Sandy

Soil drainage

Moist but well-drained, Well-drained

Soil pH

Acid, Alkaline, Neutral

Light

Full Sun

Aspect

South, West

Exposure

Sheltered

UK hardiness Note: We are working to update our ratings. Thanks for your patience.

Indoor heated (H1), Tender in frost (H3)

Defra's Risk register #1

Plant name

Ipomoea batatas (Sweet potato)

Common pest name

grape ground pearl

Scientific pest name

Margarodes vitis

Type

Insect

Current status in UK

Absent

Likelihood to spread to UK (1 is very low - 5 is very high)

2

Impact (1 is very low - 5 is very high)

5

General biosecurity comments

Main pathway; Vitis spp. plants for planting; already prohibited. However; further consideration of other pathways is required.

Defra's Risk register #2

Plant name

Ipomoea batatas (Sweet potato)

Common pest name

Asain cotton leafworm; Cluster caterpillar; Fall armyworm; Rice cutworm; Taro caterpiller; Tobacco budworm; Tobacco caterpillar; Tobacco cutworm; Tobacco leaf caterpillar

Scientific pest name

Spodoptera litura

Type

Insect

Current status in UK

Absent

Likelihood to spread to UK (1 is very low - 5 is very high)

3

Impact (1 is very low - 5 is very high)

3

General biosecurity comments

Regulated pest; frequently intercepted with occasional outbreaks which have been successfully eradicated in the UK.

Defra's Risk register #3

Plant name

Ipomoea batatas (Sweet potato)

Common pest name

Black scale; Coffee scale; black; Nigra scale

Scientific pest name

Parasaissetia nigra

Type

Insect

Current status in UK

Present (Limited)

Likelihood to spread in UK (1 is very low - 5 is very high)

2

Impact (1 is very low - 5 is very high)

3

General biosecurity comments

Present at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew for in excess of 100 years. Candidate for deregulation.

About this section

Our plants are under greater threat than ever before. There is increasing movement of plants and other material traded from an increasing variety of sources. This increases the chances of exotic pests arriving with imported goods and travellers, as well as by natural means. Shoot is working with Defra to help members to do their part in preventing the introduction and spread of invasive risks.

Traveling or importing plants? Please read "Don't risk it" advice here

Suspected outbreak? Click here for contact details to report to the relevant authority.

Date updated: 7^th March 2019 For more information visit: https://planthealthportal.defra.gov.uk/