General Plant Information (Edit)
Plant Habit: Vine
Life cycle: Perennial
Sun Requirements: Full Sun to Partial Shade
Water Preferences: Mesic
Minimum cold hardiness: Zone 11 +4.4 °C (40 °F) to +7.2 °C (50 °F)
Maximum recommended zone: Zone 13
Plant Height: 1-10 inches
Plant Spread: 5 to 70 feet
Leaves: Unusual foliage color
Fruit: Dehiscent
Other: Rarely appears but when it does, it is brown at maturity and splits open to reveal the hard, black seeds inside.
Flowers: Showy
Other: Flowers rarely appear but when they do they look like a morning glory or bindweed. They are pink or white with a purple center. Flowers need cross-pollination to produce seed.
Flower Color: Pink
Purple
White
Multi-Color: The flowers can be pink or white but they always have a purple center.
Flower Time: Late spring or early summer
Summer
Late summer or early fall
Fall
Underground structures: Tuber
Uses: Erosion control
Groundcover
Culinary Herb
Vegetable
Cooked greens
Suitable as Annual
Edible Parts: Leaves
Roots
Eating Methods: Raw
Cooked
Wildlife Attractant: Bees
Butterflies
Resistances: Tolerates foot traffic
Humidity tolerant
Toxicity: Fruit is poisonous
Other: Seeds are poisonous and contain LSA, a compound similar to LSD.
Propagation: Seeds: Scarify seeds
Start indoors
Will not come true from seed
Other info: Seeds are extremely rare.
Propagation: Other methods: Cuttings: Stem
Cuttings: Tip
Layering
Other: The tubers can be rooted to produce shoots known as "slips", which can be separated to produce new plants.
Pollinators: Moths and Butterflies
Bumblebees
Bees
Various insects
Containers: Suitable in 3 gallon or larger
Miscellaneous: Patent/Plant Breeders' Rights: PP: 18573 Can. Can.: 2902

Image
Common names
  • Sweet Potato Vine
  • Ornamental Sweet Potato
  • Morning Glory
  • Sweet Potato

Photo Gallery
Location: Western Kentucky
Date: Summer 2010
Sweet potato vine
Location: central Illinois
Date: 2014-10-16
Location: Fairfax, VA | August, 2022
Date: 2022-08-14
Location: central Illinois
Date: 2014-09-03
Location: Middle Tennessee
Date: 2011-10-13
Location: My home
Date: 2014-09-30

Date: 2013-04-01
Location: central Illinois
Date: 2014-05-31
Location: Sebastian, Florida
Date: 2017-01-27
Location: central Illinois
Date: 9-27-14
Location: central Illinois
Date: 2015-06-15
Location: Middle Tennessee
Date: 2011-11-25
Location: Riverside, CA
Date: 2015-04-25
Location: Home
Date: 2011-11-25
Starting a new vine for next year
Location: My home
Date: 2014-10-21
Location: Middle Tennessee
Date: 9/20/2011
This plant is tagged in:
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Comments:
  • Posted by SongofJoy (Clarksville, TN - Zone 6b) on Oct 16, 2011 5:14 PM concerning plant:
    Drought tolerant, tolerates full sun very well, easy to grow. Good in the ground or in pots as a trailing vine.
  • Posted by SongofJoy (Clarksville, TN - Zone 6b) on Sep 30, 2014 7:32 AM concerning plant:
    This plant makes a good annual groundcover. It likes heat and humidity and can grow as much as 36" a week here and in other parts of the South. Cool temperatures and low humidity will result in a more compact plant. It has reseeded in a protected area in my yard.

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