Anyone live in the Zone5 area (northern-central Midwest US) and grown sweet potatoes using the "black plastic method"? (create a ridge, cover it w/blk plastic, cut holes in top and plant slips through holes)
I ask because the seed company (Harris Seeds) says I should leave plastic in place till harvest.
Instructions say "central/southern locations should remove after a month"
W/Climate change, its getting warmer in Zone5! What do you think?
I've done something similar with black landscape fabric and melons. I'm pretty sure the black color is helpful to keep the soil temp nice and warm. I always wonder about how the non-breathability of the plastic affects the soil beneath.
I do plant my sweet potatoes on a wide, tall ridge (but no plastic or fabric).
@donray What zone are you?
I wanted to try the black plastic to help with the warming, since we've had such a chilly May.
I’m in 5b. We have the same problem with chilly May weather (we were at 45° F this morning), which is bad for trying to get heat-loving plants growing early enough to take advantage of the heat of July and August for ripening.
That’s why I’ve used the black landscape fabric. But a lot of growers use plastic. There’s an Amish farm that I see from the highway, and they grow a lot of melons and pumpkins. I can see a lot of black plastic on the ground.
@donray Yep, I pulled in my buckets of cucumbers and tomatoes last night, and will do for the next 2 nights as well with < 50F temps at night.
I've got all my tomato seedlings that really need to go into the ground - that's happening this weekend as the ten day has > 50F lows. Cross fingers this is late enough!
In my experience, tomatoes tolerate cool weather OK. They just don’t grow much. I’ve held off on transplanting peppers because I’ve had bad experiences with plants getting stunted/sick, and they struggle all year.
Michael / Chgowiz 🎲🎲
Don Ray