A vigorous annual or a tender perennial it takes off in summer heat.
Sweet potato bine.
Sweet potato vine does well in containers where it is a common spiller plant.
They are bred for the beauty of their leaves rather than edible tubers and the vines from these plants make them look more like a morning glory or clematis than a member of the potato family.
In containers make sure there are adequate drainage holes.
In hot summer climates such as southern florida it can struggle in full sun during the hottest months especially if the soil dries out.
The plant grows best in moist well drained soil.
Sweet potato vine ipomoea batatas named for its edible cousin is an ornamental warm season annual grown for its attractive leaves and vining habit the foliage lends a tropical feel to the garden and comes in a range of colors and varying forms.
Typically used as spillers in containers they also make fantastic groundcovers typically spreading 4 to 6 feet.
Sweet potato vines enjoy a bright sunny location outdoors with similar conditions in the home.
Varieties of this type of sweet potato may bear black chartreuse or multicolored leaves.
Care of sweet potato plants.
Yet the tubers and even the plant in some cases are easy to save for another.
Sweet potato plants can provide a beautiful low ground cover in planters that will trail out over the edge.
Ipomoea butatas or sweet potato vine thrives in hot tropical climates and is an ornamental foliage plant often used as a foil for flowering displays.
There s multiple ways to use sweet potato vine in your landscape.
They also thrive in heat.
The ornamental varieties are simply cultivars of the species plant.
Sweet potato vines the best spillers ever.
Anyone who s gardened in containers for long knows the magic formula for an effective container you need a thriller upright showy plant fillers mounding plants on the sides and spillers trailing plants that cascade over the sides.
Ornamental sweet potato vines are in the same family as edible sweet potatoes and are in fact the same species.
Some of the older varieties may even grace your garden with a few sporadic lavender blooms that look like a slightly more tubular morning glory and for good.
Sweet potato vine grows practically anywhere from full sun to full shade.
It does best in full sun and warm weather temperatures should remain above 55ºf before planting outside.
The foliage of ornamental sweet potato vines is the reason they are grown.
Where to plant sweet potato vine.
One of the easiest ways to create multi seasonal interest in the garden is to use plants with interesting foliage.
Give them well draining soil whether they are grown in pots or in the ground.
Gardeners turn to the sweet potato vine for its ability to power through just about anything while bringing interesting shapes sizes and colors to a pot or plot.