Plant sweet potato slips in the garden 12 to 18 inches apart in rows 3 feet apart. In hot, sunny weather, protect new transplants with row cover or overturned pots to discourage wilting and dieback.

So it’s advisable to plant sweet potato slips instead, which are the rooted sprouts that grow in the tubers of sweet potatoes. They look like little sticks and leaves growing from the vegetable.

"Usually sweet potato slips are available to buy in late spring since sweet potatoes need hot weather and warm soil to grow and thrive," she says. "Slips are rooted stems that you can grow yourself ...

You can either purchase slips from a garden center or create your own by partially submerging one-third of a sweet potato in water until it sprouts shoots. Plant the slips approximately three ...