The growing of sweet potatoes is one of the simplest within the vegetable cultivation, but an optimal management and some pre-planting techniques are essential for the development of the crop.
The first thing you should do is to disinfect the land through some disinfection techniques, before working the plot of land.
Once the land is prepared, we can use base dressing or directly work the land (to plough it, normally with a distance of 80 cm between furrows).
After preparing the land, we will place the drip tape irrigation system. The most common thing is to establish a distance of approximately 30 cm between dropper and dropper, although it can vary according to the edaphic characteristics of the soil. This process can be mechanized, and you can combine the landploughing with the placement of the drip system.
Next, the planting. It is carried out from March to June depending on the geographical location of each farmer. The plant is usually planted horizontally, burying it from 3 to 5 nodes according to the desired size. In addition, it is important that the plant is planted the same day of your arrival.
Once planted, it will be irrigated intermittently (every other day) during a week with 0.5 L/ plant. Then it will be given a few days of “dryness” so that the root deepens, and we will be controlling the irrigation according to the soil moisture. We will need temperatures between 16 and 33°C so that the growing cycle develops in ideal conditions.
Furthermore, we should do a pest control, including the wireworm Agrotes lineatus, a pest that severely affects the quality of the product. It may also occasionally affect the leafworm, green or black aphid and red mite.
Finally, once the growing season of the chosen variety has ended, we must weed the area and harvest the sweet potatoes. You have to be especially careful during this process since the skin of the sweet potato is sensitive and, therefore, it makes itdifficult to preserve.
