(Distributed 09/11/08) Earl Fontenot may have to wait a month before any losses are apparent in his sweet potato crop after Hurricane Gustav. “It’s too early to tell if we’re going to have some loss,” he said. “But it’s not looking good. They are under stressful conditions now.”

Nematodes are a serious pest to both our sweet potato industry and for those people growing them in a home garden. These pests affect the total production and quality of the sweet potato. Since the damage occurs to roots below ground, they are often not recognized as being a problem.

Effective weed management is a critical aspect to successful sweet potato production since weeds compete for nutrients, water and sunlight and impair crop yield and quality. Perennial weed management, preplant burndown and in-season management included. (PDF format only)

Louisiana Sweet Potato News aims to update and inform all those associated with or interested in Louisiana sweet potatoes. Among the topics featured in this newsletter are such items as crop profiles, information related to various aspects of sweet potato production, the latest details on insect, weed and disease management, and current industry news and events.

Sweet potatoes are an important commodity in Louisiana. These best management practices, also known as BMPs, provide sweet potato growers guidelines on what practices they can implement to reduce the effect agricultural practices may have on the environment. (PDF Format Only)

Provides information and symptions related to several common diseases in sweet potatoes.

Sweet potatoes are not very sweet or moist when first dug. It takes six to eight weeks of proper curing and storage before they have the sweet, moist taste and texture desired when baked, says LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dr. Tom Koske.

Irrigation ponds can irrigate fields during the summer without resorting to pumping water from wells.

(Distributed 04/08/04) Two sweet potato varieties developed by the LSU AgCenter recently were awarded U.S. patents – the first ones given to sweet potatoes.

Stressing that production agriculture alone is not enough to sustain rural economies, a leading food science expert said farm productivity needs to be converted to consumer-ready products.