Posyplanter, Well, I am referring more in general to the type of soil but if you find a particular spot where they're happy, I think you could grow them there every year. In general, sweet potatoes are very disease-resistant and very few pests bother them in a home garden. So, I grow mine in one of two places (or, sometimes, in both those places) every year and don't really engage in crop rotation since there's little worry that either pests or diseases would build up in the soil. I add compost to the beds every fall/winter to put nutrition back into the soil, but since they're sweet potato beds and rich soil isn't needed/desirable for them, not too much compost....about an inch of compost goes into the sandy soil beds annually. In my case, I really couldn't rotate anyway. We have very thick and dense, brick-red clay that, even when well-amended, is too heavy for sweet potatoes. There is one narrow vein of sandy soil about 30' feet wide that cuts from north to south across our property and runs maybe 60'. Most of that area has trees in it, but I have carved out two small beds between those trees and my main vegetable garden and those beds are reserved for sweet potatoes. To rotate them, I'd have to move them to a raised bed of heavy, improved clay and I'd rather leave them in the sandy soil. I suppose if I ever have problems in the sandy soil, I'll have to either move them to clay the next growing season or skip growing them for a year. By the way, I have been in touch with my sweet potato slip provider this weekend and he tells me it has been a very bad year nationwide for planting sweet potatoes. Remember how wet last year was? Well, lots of commercial growers harvested the sweet potatoes just fine, but the potatoes held over to use as propagation stock for this year must have had either too high of a water content or were harboring some disease (commercial growers, because of monocropping, often see disease issues we home gardeners don't see). When the sweet potato slips were planted this spring, which also was abnormally wet in the sweet potato growing areas, many died and now sweet potato slips apparently are in short supply this year. That really makes me appreciate one of our local growers here in Oklahoma (Duck Creek Farms) even more because Gary did have sweet potato slips for sale this year so at least some of us were able to obtain some before we even knew they were in short supply nationwide. Sweet potatoes only store for maybe 2 to 3 months even in ideal conditions, so it is very difficult and a very complicated process for growers to keep sweet potato propagation stock alive from one fall to the following spring. Since our local grower is one of a small number of people seeking to bring back many heirloom varieties to the market here in the USA, it is especially important that he not lose his propagation stock. Sometimes, I think we home gardeners have it so easy...we buy stuff, plant it, grow it and harvest it and never realize the very hard work that is involved just in having something as 'simple' as sweet potato slips available for us to purchase. Seeing the struggles the commercial growers have gone through this spring with their sweet potato slips has given me a whole new appreciation for the fact that home gardeners like us can just buy slips and plant them. If we have to or want to, we can grow our own slips, but it is unlikely I'd be able to keep 20 heirloom varieties going over the winter every year without a greenhouse or something else. Dawn

Have you thought about making refrigerator (aka make-ahead) mashed potatoes? They keep very well for days in the refrigerator. I make them and freeze them in dollops for individual servings, then vacuum-seal them in FoodSaver bags. A great way to take advantage of potatoes when they are buy one bag and get one bag free...and you can't possibly consume that much - as another alternative use for the recipes. There have been many recipes posted recently (so scroll down the pages), but here's the one I use, and you'll find many by Googling - refrigerator mashed potatoes or make-ahead mashed potatoes. 5# potatoes (washed and used whole, or peeled - your choice) 6 oz. cream cheese 1 c. sour cream 1/4 c. butter Cook potatoes per usual, drain. Mash adding the remaining ingredients. Some recipes say these potatoes keep 10 days. Other recipes add chives, garlic, onion powder, etc. I tend to add those just before serving since some of the strong flavors can change when frozen, or intensify when refrigerated. -Grainlady

I don't use the honey or cinnamon in this recipe. It's really good and since I love the "relish" I always double the amounts. Sweet Potato-Coconut Soup with Spicy Relish Spicy Relish: 1 T canola oil 1 T unsalted butter Pinch of red pepper flakes ý small sweet potato, peeled & cut into a small dice Salt and fresh black pepper ü cup finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley Heat oil & butter over medium heat. Add red-pepper flakes; heat for 10 seconds. Add diced sweet potato, salt & pepper. Cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until softened, 15 minutes. Uncover, increase heat to high & cook until diced potatoes are golden brown, 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a bowl; stir in the parsley. (I like diced potato to get a bit crunch). Soup: 1-1/2 T canola oil 1 small red onion, chopped 2â piece of fresh ginger, grated Pinch of red pepper flakes 3 cups chicken broth ý cup water 1-1/2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled & cut into a large dice 1-1/2 cups unsweetened coconut milk (light version if you prefer) 1 T clover honey Large pinch of ground cinnamon Heat oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and ginger; cook until soft, 5 minutes. Add red-pepper flakes and cook for 30 seconds. Add broth and water; bring to a boil. Add sweet potatoes; bring to a simmer. Cook until potatoes are soft, 20-30 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes. Use immersion blender to puree. Simmer over low heat. Whisk in coconut milk (or alternative), honey, and cinnamon. Cook until thickened and warmed through. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls; top with a spoonful of the spicy relish. Serves 4. Per serving: 410 calories; 34g carbs;10 mg cholesterol; 30g fat & 4 g fiber. Source: adapted from a Bobby Flay recipe My note: the âÂÂspicy relishâ is the best part of this soup! Double the amounts.

I have a similar recipe -- 5 pounds of potatoes, one stick of butter, 8 ounces of cream cheese, 8 ounce carton sour cream, salt and pepper to taste. If I use the little red potatoes, I don't even peel! Cook potatoes (peeled or not depending on the kind), until done, mash, add butter, cream cheese and sour cream and salt and pepper to taste. Mix all together and put into a buttered baking dish. Cover and Refrigerate (and can be made day ahead). Warm at least 45 minutes before serving at 350. They also are forgiving if someone is late they can be kept in the oven. With all the butter, cream cheese and sour cream, they don't seem to dry out. AND if you have any leftovers, they make great potato cakes OR potato soup! I figure the 5 pounds will feed 20 people. You can do whatever add ons you wish -- the garlic, rosemary, or make them "loaded" with cheese, bacon and green onions. I've made these for family dinners, weddings, elegant dinners. They're really good mashed potatoes.