Sowing & Growing Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are an incredibly hearty & satisfying crop to grow, especially in Southern Appalachia. Their lush vines, nutritious roots, and long storage life make them a staple in many home gardens and homesteads. In Western North Carolina—where elevations, soil types, and microclimates can vary—it’s helpful to understand the best practices for sowing, growing, and harvesting sweet potatoes.

There’s a reason it is our state's official vegetable, yes really… that’s a thing, I checked. I will walk you through everything you need to know to grow sweet potatoes successfully in our region: from choosing the right varieties to preparing the soil, planting slips (not seeds) , and curing for long-term storage.

Choosing the Best Sweet Potato Varieties for Western North Carolina

The mountains of Western North Carolina are a biodiversity hotspot, so it makes sense that our growing zones range from 6b to 8a. The growing season is warm enough for sweet potatoes, but gardeners need to select varieties that mature in 90 to 110 days to account for possible early frosts in fall.

A few varieties included to grow here are as follows:

Beauregard: One of the most popular varieties, Beauregard produces high yields of orange-fleshed roots and matures in about 90–100 days. It has a smooth skin, stores well, and performs reliably in many soil types.
Georgia Jet: Known for its early maturity (as few as 90 days), this variety is well-suited for higher elevations where the growing season is shorter. Georgia Jet also produces large, flavorful roots but may be more prone to cracking in overly rich soil.
O’Henry: A white-fleshed sweet potato with a firmer texture than orange types. This variety is ideal for roasting and mashes with a mild, sweet flavor. It also stores well and tends to have fewer pest problems.
Centennial: This early variety is disease-resistant and produces deep orange flesh. It’s another solid option for mountain growers who need to make the most of the summer window.
Carolina Ruby: An heirloom variety that is thought by many sweet potato advocates to be the best tasting sweet potato out there. As its name suggests, it has a bright colored red skin, and vibrant orange flesh. Its flavor makes it a favorite for pies, mashed or just about any other way you could eat this beauty.

Right now at The Farm Connection we have many of these varieties available for purchase, and the time is now to get them in the ground. Varieties like beauregard, o’henry, carolina ruby, sweet purple, and vardaman are all here!

Soil Preferences and Bed Preparation

Sweet potatoes grow best in loose, well draining soil, with pH between 5.8 and 6.5. In Western North Carolina, where clay soil is common, amending the soil before planting is crucial.

To prepare the ground:

Use raised beds or broad, low mounds to improve drainage and allow the soil to warm faster in spring.
Mix in aged compost, leaf mold, to loosen heavy soils and increase organic matter.
Avoid high-nitrogen fertilizers, which promote leafy vine growth at the expense of root development.
If your native soil stays wet or heavy, consider growing in grow bags, containers, or beds built on a foundation of compost and sand.

Growing Sweet Potatoes From Slips

Sweet potatoes are not planted from seeds or cut tubers like regular potatoes. Instead, they are propagated from slips, which are shoots that grow from a mature sweet potato.

You can buy slips from nurseries or start your own indoors:

In late winter or early spring, place a mature, untreated sweet potato in a jar of water or a shallow tray of damp sand. Keep it in a warm, sunny spot.
In a few weeks, sprouts will emerge. Once these shoots reach 6–8 inches long, gently twist them from the tuber.
Root the slips in water or plant them directly into moist soil outdoors after all danger of frost has passed.

In Western North Carolina, this typically means planting slips in mid to late May, once soil temperatures have reached at least 65°F.

Planting Guidelines

When planting your slips, space them 12 to 18 inches apart in rows spaced about 3 feet apart. This allows each plant enough room to sprawl and form healthy roots.

Sweet potatoes require:

Full sun, with at least six to eight hours of direct sunlight daily.
Consistent moisture, especially during the first few weeks after transplanting. About one inch of water per week is ideal.
Mulch, which helps regulate soil temperature, retain moisture, and reduce weed pressure. Use straw, leaf mulch, or black plastic.

Keep in mind that sweet potatoes are vining plants and will spread out widely unless trellised or contained in beds or bags.

Growing in Small Spaces

Sweet potatoes adapt well to container growing, which is ideal if your soil is too rocky or heavy. Use a 15-gallon or larger grow bag for each plant and fill it with a mix of compost, peat moss or coconut coir, and sand or perlite for drainage. At our store front right now we are stocked up with multiple sizes of fabric pots, ideal for container growing as they are plastic free and reusable. I’d recommend 3-4 slips in a bag of 20 or 25 gallons to ensure healthy root growth.

Bush varieties like Vardaman are ideal for containers, but any compact or early-maturing variety will do well. Place containers in a sunny location and keep them consistently watered.

Companion Planting with Sweet Potatoes

Even sweet potatoes get by with a little help from their friends. I am a big believer in companion planting as it's a free and easy way to maximize soil health. Sweet potatoes benefit from several companion plants that help deter pests, improve soil fertility, or attract beneficial insects.

Good companions include:

Bush beans: Fix nitrogen in the soil and help support healthy vine growth.
Spinach and lettuce: Can be interplanted early in the season before vines spread.
Dill: Attracts beneficial insects and may help deter pests.
Marigolds and nasturtiums: Help repel root-knot nematodes and other insect pests.
Alyssum: A great pollinator plant that draws in hoverflies and parasitic wasps.

Avoid planting near:

Tomatoes: They share some pests and fungal diseases with sweet potatoes.
Cucumbers and squash: These crops compete for space and nutrients and can encourage fungal spread in crowded gardens.

Pest and Disease Prevention

Sweet potatoes are generally hardy but can face a few pests and disease challenges:

Wireworms and root-knot nematodes: These can damage roots underground. Crop rotation and adding beneficial nematodes to the soil can help.
Flea beetles and sweet potato weevils: Look for tiny holes in foliage or damage to vines. Mulching and planting trap crops can reduce issues.
Fungal rots: Avoid overwatering and make sure soil drains well. Start with certified disease-free slips to minimize problems.

One of the most effective strategies is rotating crops each year, ideally on a three- to four-year cycle. Avoid planting sweet potatoes where other root crops (especially from the morning glory family) have grown recently.

Harvesting and Curing Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are usually ready to harvest 90 to 110 days after planting, or when leaves start to yellow and die back.

To harvest:

Loosen soil around the base of each plant with a garden fork or spade, or your hands... I'm not going to judge you.
Gently lift the roots out, being careful not to bruise or cut them.
Shake off loose soil but do not wash the roots yet.

After harvest, cure the roots in a warm (85°F), humid (85–90% humidity) environment for 5 to 10 days. This helps thicken the skins and converts starches to sugar, improving flavor and shelf life. Once cured, store sweet potatoes in a cool (55–60°F), dark, and dry area with good ventilation. A cardboard box with a lid and a few holes in it works just fine Do not refrigerate raw sweet potatoes, as cold temperatures can ruin their texture and sweetness.

Final Thoughts

Sweet potatoes are an adaptable, low-maintenance crop with high rewards. Whether you grow them in mounds, containers, or raised beds, these versatile roots offer food security, nutritional value, and garden beauty all season long.

There’s a reason more sweet potatoes come out of North Carolina than any other state, and it’s not just because of our sweet demeanors. They thrive here.