Propagating Ipomoea batatas

I've got some nice trailing Ipomoeas in the tubs, and I think I could do with some more next year (and don't want to have to buy them again!)



Just take some bits off and root them in water? or stick them in to 50:50 MPC & Perlite like my normal cuttings? ... or something else?

Is it getting late to be trying to root them do you think?

If I dig up the plants will they over winter OK? "Frost free" cold-conservatory going to be good enough?

Are they likely to have tubers that I can also try to start next Spring? (My experience with [edible] Sweet Potatoes is that they are hard to get going from tubers - I've suspended them on the surface of water and then taken "slips" from the shoots that, eventually, emerge ... so keeping the plants going would be less hassle I reckon).

 

I have grown Coleus from cuttings suspended in water, even taken a leaf,and got them to root. I still want to take some more cuttings, this time I will keep them in a warm place to overwinter. I also have tried to get slips to grow from Sweet Potatoes, I forgot I had left one that I had bought,and when I went to it, it had sprouted. So I left it a bit longer, and now have potted it up, and will see what happens.

 

I propagate Ipomoea indica from cutting every year, usually in early Sept, that doesn't form a tuber.
Not grown I. babatas, other than the ordinary sweet potato, but I'm guessing it would be best to lift the tubers and overwinter, thinking just frost free might not be quite warm enough though.

 

I`m rooting them in water at the moment , if you are interested I`ve got this version of it.

 

Thanks John. Decided I had got bored with Fuchsias and Petunias this year, so went Exotic at the front of the house too! Thinking about some large Colocasia in the tubs next year - although I've made such a hash of growing them this year I'm not sure I'm ready for that challenge yet!

Ian Cooke, who writes Articles and Books on Exotics, posted these pictures on his blog recently showing some Colo/Alocasia in town-centre planters - which is what caught my fancy for next year




http://www.pampas2palms.com/2012/09/flirting-with-aroids.html

They had that in the garden centre last spring, when I got mine, but I Um'd and Ah'd and eventually thought I had spent enough money! so I'd love some please. Perhaps I could swap for some of my chocolate one (and I have a lime green one as well [Picture on blog if you want to see it])

What temperature are you planning on keeping them at over winter Sal?

 

Kristen , peoples have suggested to keep a minimum of 7/10c as they are soft plants , but I`m really tempted to make a big pot with all cutting and move all indoor .
I have to admit that alocosia in pot look great , you do will need a minimum of 7/10 per pot to have that effect , I would have gone around my supplier but you never know what you get out of it.
I`m always been a fan of large foliage , but recently I really start to love colors , the stranger the better .
I`ll keep an ipomea for you.

 

I took some cuttings a couple of weeks back - fingers crossed

I've now lifted the parent plants, to overwinter them somewhere warm enough to, hopefully, keep them alive.

In lifting them I found a few tubers that had broken off. How do I grow them on?

On the couple of times I have grow Sweet Potatoes I suspended the tubers "just in" a glass of water by skewering the tuber with toothpicks and resting them on the rim of the glass, and then taking "slip" cuttings of the shoots that appeared. It was a slow process, possibly because the supermarket-bought tubers were maybe treated with chemicals to stop them sprouting.

So I'm wondering with I:

1. Plant them now as-is
2. Store and plant as-is in Spring
3. Store and do as before with Sweet Potatoes to raised Slip Cuttings in the Spring

?

 

Kristen , many sweet potatoes are getting through radiation to stop germinate them , years ago I bought a spudzilla from tesco and then find out that they have been made completely sterile , I found out the the one from the asian shop are sproud with no problem at all.

About overwintering the batas , why don`t you try all 3 system and then let us know what happen .

 

Guinea-pig eh?!! Only got 3 tubers though ... so a bit of a small sample-size for an experiment.

 

No...... more of Garden corner super heroe ......

 

Magic power? Grafting