Sweet potato vines grow in many varieties.
The sweet potato is a warm-weather vegetable that is tender and a native to Central and South America. There are many types of sweet potatoes and they grow on trailing vines that cover the soil. The sweet potato is rich in Vitamin A and not related to the yam. Sweet potatoes are commonly known by their orange flesh, but other types include white, yellow and even purple flesh.
Covington
The Covington sweet potato was developed by sweet potato breeders Dr. Craig Yencho and Kenneth Pecota, released and made available to growers in 2005. The sweet potato has a smooth skin, rose-colored roots and an orange flesh. The leaves of the Covington sweet potato are triangular with a purple pigment that turns green when they mature. Stems are thick and green with less branching. Covington sweet potatoes are harvested 105 to 115 days after planting.
Evangeline
The Evangeline sweet potato has a rose-colored skin and a moist, deep orange flesh. The sweet potato originated from a nursery in the late 1990s. The leaves are dark purple when immature and unfolded, but the color changes to dark green. This sweet potato has green-stemmed vines. The Evangeline plant produces very few oversize roots and contains a large amount of sugar. It is good for baking purposes.
Purple Sweet Potato
The purple sweet potato is a native of the Japanese island of Okinawa. Known as Okinawan potato, this sweet potato is a member of the morning glory family. Also grown in Hawaii, the purple sweet potato is rich in nutrition. They are loaded with antioxidants, high in fiber, fat-free and low in calories. According to the Hawaiian Pride website, the purple sweet potato is naturally sweet and contains a high content of anthocyanins, which gives the potato its purple color.
O'Henry Sweet Potato
The O’Henry sweet potato has a white-colored skin with a cream-colored flesh. A variant of the Beauregard sweet potato, the meat of the O’Henry is moist. The leaves are mainly heart-shaped and green. The stem and vines are green-colored with light purple at the highest point of the slender stem and at the point where the leaf attaches to the stem. The flesh of the O’Henry is a little drier than that of the Beauregard sweet potato, according to the North Carolina Crop Improvement Association.
Tags: sweet potato, sweet potato, Covington sweet, orange flesh, purple sweet, sweet potato, Beauregard sweet