How To Plant, Grow, And Harvest Sweet Potatoes

Ready to grow something sweet in your garden? Sweet potatoes aren’t just tasty and nutritious—they’re garden rock stars! With their tropical vibes, sprawling vines, and vibrant orange roots, these heat-loving plants thrive with minimal fuss. Whether you’re in the sunny South or giving them a go up North with raised beds and clever hacks, we’ll show you how to turn a humble root into a delicious harvest.

This nutritious, sweet-tasting root vegetable is heat-tolerant and pest-resistant. Here is everything you need to know about growing sweet potatoes.

Though commonly grown in the South because they require warm weather, sweet potatoes can be successfully grown in northern regions, too. See our advice on which varieties to choose below.

About Sweet Potatoes

The sweet potato is a tropical plant and is actually a member of the Morning Glory family. Compare a sweet potato vine’s foliage and flowers to those of morning glory, and you’ll see the family resemblance! Despite their name, they are not related to potatoes, which are in the nightshade family. Another difference between sweet potatoes and “standard” potatoes is that the edible portion of the sweet potato is a tuberous root, not a true tuber (which are technically modified plant stems).

This root vegetable has deep-orange flesh and a coppery skin jacket. Sweet potatoes are commonly served cooked in mashed form or roasted whole. They may also be used as pie filling.

This tropical crop needs at least 4 months of warm weather and warm soil, but they are drought- and heat-tolerant and have few pests or diseases. Although traditionally a southern crop, many short-season sweet potato varieties exist today. They will grow in the North (even parts of Canada!) when grown in sandy soil or raised beds mulched with black plastic to keep the soil warm.

Sweet Potato Slips

Note that sweet potatoes are not grown from seed. Instead, they’re grown from slips, which are sprouts from existing sweet potatoes. Slips are often available at local garden centers and nurseries, from local farmers (such as farmers’ markets), or mail-order companies. Or you can start your own (see below).

Before you order slips, please make sure that you have a long enough growing season to grow sweet potatoes. Most varieties will take about 90 to 120 days to mature. See your frost dates and length of growing season. Also, ensure you time your order with your planting dates in mind!