We just harvested what might be our BEST sweet potato crop ever, and the crazy part is that we didn't do a whole lot to these plants during the last couple months!

We planted our sweet potato slips in late May/early June and grew three varieties this year — Orleans, Vardaman, and Purple Majesty. A few days before harvest, we cut the vines back (a process called dehaulming) to help toughen the skins and make the sweet potatoes more durable during harvest. Once those vines were gone, we could already see some HUGE clusters hiding just beneath the soil!

So what did we do differently this year?

The biggest change was feeding our sweet potatoes more heavily EARLY in the growing season. We started with Coop Gro 3-3-4 at planting, side-dressed and hilled them once they started growing, and then gave them two applications of AgroThrive Fruit & Flower before the vines became too thick to work around.

After that, we pretty much let them ride. We didn't water nearly as often as we probably should have, and despite seeing some insect damage on the leaves, we never sprayed them. Yet somehow we ended up with an incredible harvest.

In this video, we'll dig all three varieties, compare the harvest, and talk about why I think front-loading fertility early in the season made such a big difference.

Of course, every garden and soil is different, so a soil test is always the best way to know exactly what your plants need. But if you've struggled to get a good sweet potato harvest, there might be something to learn from what happened in our garden this year!

Orleans • Vardaman • Purple Majesty

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PRODUCT LINKS:
SQUARE TOMATO CAGES: https://amzn.to/3YgFE9S
BOX OF TOMATO TWINE: https://amzn.to/44x5Von
P1 DRIP TAPE: https://bit.ly/3EzAg8z

RAISED BEDS: https://lazydogfarm.com/collections/r...
PLANTS & SEEDS: https://lazydogfarm.com/collections/p...
FIG TREES: https://lazydogfarm.com/collections/f...
FERTILIZERS & MORE: https://lazydogfarm.com/collections/f...

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HOW-TO IRRIGATION BLOGS:

Raised Bed Drip Irrigation: https://bit.ly/3MkcIX4
Fruit Tree Drip Irrigation: https://bit.ly/3UVaH7U
In-Ground Drip Irrigation: https://bit.ly/3CnysxY

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SHOP OUR FAVORITE PRODUCTS ON AMAZON:
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SHOP WITH OUR AFFILIATE PARTNERS:

Drip Depot: https://bit.ly/3BCMag4

Wood Prairie Potatoes: https://bit.ly/3U1p4Hj

Steele Sweet Potatoes: https://bit.ly/3d663mp

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MAILING ADDRESS:
Lazy Dog Farm
PO Box 237
Funston, GA 31753

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#backyardgrocerystore​​​​ #growyourownfood​​​​ #vegetablegarden​​​​ #sustainableliving​​​​ #homesteading​ #homegrown #organicgarden #neverstopgrowing #sustainableagriculture