Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Having a go at sweet potato

Kakdah bought a kilogram of sweet potatoes. She did masak lemak udang with it. The few left were more or less forgotten. Then one day she found them sprouting with lovely purplish red shoots. I fluffed the soil a little bit at the place where Zinnias were once towering elegantly and put the sprouting potatoes. Zinnias could have taken most of the nutrients, so I bring back fertility by adding a spoon of poultry fertiliser pellets in each hole.

We never grow sweet potato before ......

Three clumps of sweet potato shoots were quite a sight. The leaves are nice looking indeed, green with a touch of purple. Now I am searching for more info, how long do I have to wait for potatoes to develop in the soil. Huh..., yet another adventure.... But we don't have to wait for potatoes to develop for harvest, shoots can be pinched for fried menu. I see sweet potato shoots sold at fifty cents a bunch in the market......

Update:
Some info from gardening.about.com
Latin name: Ipomea batatas
Days to harvest: 3 to 4 months




sweet potato shoots


At the same time, on the other veggie bed,


Our sole surviving sunflower has its bud opening up just a little..... Will it be as bright as what has been shown in other blotanical blogs. Will the yellow petals be truly yellow?... Can the slender stem support the flower?... questions... questions.... huh!

earlier



now

sole surviving
sunflower bud
opens a little bit more






Happy Gardening
~Bangchik and Kakdah
Putrajaya, MALAYSIA.
at

18 comments:

  1. Janet, The Queen of SeafordSeptember 08, 2009 3:19 AM

    I enjoy sweet potatoes!!

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  2. JoanneSeptember 08, 2009 4:15 AM

    I didn't realise you could eat the shoots of sweet potato

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  3. Tatyana@MySecretGardenSeptember 08, 2009 5:07 AM

    Good job! I grew my potatoes the same way, they were sprouting, and instead of disposing them, I planted them. Aren't we good?!

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  4. JGHSeptember 08, 2009 9:59 AM

    You can eat sweet potato shoots??! To think of all that I've wasted....!! I'll have to try them. These do have pretty leaves.

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  5. Chloe mSeptember 08, 2009 10:53 AM

    These sweet potatoes are becoming more and more popular as ornamentals around here. I see them in pots mixed with other annuals, they are pretty! Your sunflower is going to be gorgeous!
    rosey

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  6. julianSeptember 08, 2009 1:03 PM

    We also planted some once, and ate the leaves (which are very nice) - if you're interested, this is my post on it: Cooking organic sweet potato leaf

    Nice pics of the sunflower by the way! I love watching plants grow :)

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  7. EwaSeptember 08, 2009 1:45 PM

    Enjoy sweet potatoes - I wonder how it will go...
    Greetings,
    Ewa

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  8. StephanieSeptember 08, 2009 2:33 PM

    It is so good to know sweet potato is so useful. Save for the flowers (which I do not know what can be done with it), every part of the plant is edible :-) I have fun growing mine. I hope it would be the same for you. Happy gardening Bangchik & Kakdah!

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  9. RowenaSeptember 08, 2009 2:58 PM

    I'm pleased to read about your potato growing experiment. I've never grown any sort of potato, but the sweet ones, especially the purple sweets, are my ultimate favorites. How I wish it were possible to obtain them in Italy!

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  10. JoSeptember 08, 2009 3:16 PM

    I love growing things which I've never grown before. I've never tried sweet potato though.

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  11. FLowersSeptember 08, 2009 6:33 PM

    Your blog looks awesome with picture of sunflower bud. Keep it up the good work

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  12. LindaSeptember 08, 2009 7:36 PM

    I didn't know you could eat anything but the potato. How interesting. You are very resourceful to plant it when you saw it sprout. What a great unexpected bonus to your sweet potato purchase.

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  13. Muhammad khabbabSeptember 08, 2009 7:39 PM

    i am sure bloom of sunflower will be beautiful and typical yellow. Stem will support the flower, don't worry. We do grow sweet potato vine but not sure whether the tuber is eatable or not.

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  14. Bangchik and KakdahSeptember 08, 2009 9:04 PM

    Thanks everyone for the encouraging comments. I have to admit, growing sweet potato this time is not by design, more of by accident. But we will learn the same. Good to know that sweet potato become ornamental plant in some part of the world. Whereas in some other placeS, they are grown to feed people.

    Taking shoots for a menu, will be endless I heard. New shoots will keep coming.

    But I have to wait for another 3 months to see how big the purple potato will be....


    Cheers,
    bangchik and kakdah
    Putrajaya, MALAYSIA.

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  15. UnknownSeptember 08, 2009 9:22 PM

    It's been a long while I ate sweet potaotes. Sometimes we bbq them - wrapp in foil and put on the fire. Nice:)

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  16. ValSeptember 08, 2009 9:33 PM

    That is very interesting that you can eat the sweet potato leaves as the leaves of ordinary potatoes are poisonous! Val

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  17. Autumn BelleSeptember 08, 2009 10:19 PM

    Bangchik, your sunflower plant is doing very well and the sweet potato plant is looks sweet and pretty too.

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  18. Bangchik and KakdahSeptember 09, 2009 5:58 AM

    KEATS, aaaa... that's a nice way to handle sweet potato, BBQed them!

    Sweet potato shoots are definitely safe VAL.., these are sold in markets as long as I remember.

    Just imagine BELLE, I never grow sunflower before, and after second attempt at germinating them, there is plant surviving. Imagine the suspense to see the first bloom ever!!.. haha.

    ~bangchik
    Putrajaya, MALAYSIA.

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