Dear Helen: What should I do with my sweet potato planting? The vines have grown well, but I don't know when to dig them up and (hopefully) harvest the tubers.
S.V.
Dear S.V.: September's warm weather has favoured tuber development, but temperatures below 10 C can cause tuber quality to suffer. If you have a soil thermometer, use it in the sweet potato planting and dig the tubers before temperatures dip lower.
Let the tuber surfaces dry and gently brush away any clinging soil. The tubers then need curing in warmth (around 27 C) and high humidity. By the time I dig my sweet potatoes, I usually have the wood stove on. To cure the tubers, I place them in perforated steamer baskets and wrap damp tea towels around the baskets to create a humid atmosphere in the warmth near the stove.
There are many different ways to create humid warmth. Find a hot spot in the house or use an electric heater. Whatever you put the tubers in, suspend a damp cloth over and around it. The curing period is 10 to 14 days.
Following curing, store the tubers in cool room temperatures around 18 C. Cold storage temperatures will damage the tubers. I set them in a basket placed (indoors) beside the front door, where it stays decidedly cool.
I wait for a month or two before using my own sweet potatoes. Their flavour intensifies in storage.
Dear Helen: Whenever I visit Vancouver Island, I read your column. On a visit last year, I read about a low, thyme-like ground cover with blue flowers. It drapes over a small stone wall in my garden, and I meant to write down the name. I believe it began with an L.
P.K.
Dear P.K.: The plant is probably Lithodora 'Grace Ward' (blue Lithospermum), a popular plant on the Island for its evergreen foliage, long spring-and summer-flowering season, and bright sky-blue flowers. It thrives in acidic, well-drained soils.
Dear Helen: I bought an assortment of hardy spring-flowering bulbs that I'd like to try in double or triple layers in patio pots. Can you give me some idea which bulbs to place where?
B.L.
Dear B.L.: I usually plant tulip bulbs as the bottom layer, but I restrict my choices to the early and mid-season kinds, to be sure that flowering will be finished in May, when I need the same pots for planting summer flowers.
Both Single Early and Double Early tulips are excellent for containers. Popular Single Early tulips include Couleur Cardinal in deep, velvety red and Princess Irene in purpleflamed orange. Equally popular is the pink and rose Double Early Peach Blossom.
Classic goblet-shaped Triumph tulips are also good for layered container plantings. Apricot Beauty in salmon-rose is a winner, but there are many gorgeous Triumphs. New in this class are the dark coral and cream Tequila Sunrise and red and white Moulin Rouge.
Hyacinths are popular as a middle layer if you opt for three layers, but you could also use a Triumph tulip at the bottom and a Single or Double Early in the middle. Trumpet and cupped daffodils are also useful for a middle layer.
For the top layer, I most often plant early, small bulbs like crocus, dwarf irises, Chionodoxa (glory of the snow) or Anemone blanda. Early, miniature daffodils like Tête à Tête can also be used.
Make sure the pots have drainage holes and space the bulbs about two centimetres (3/4 inch) apart, and lay five to 7.5 cm (two to three inches) of the mix over each bulb layer.
Store the planted pots in a carport or unheated garage, or against a sheltered house wall. Water modestly a few times over the winter to keep the soil from drying out. Bring the pots to full light when top growth begins.
GARDEN EVENTS
Peninsula sale. The Peninsula Garden Club will host its annual fall plant sale Saturday from 9 to 11 a.m. Great plants at great prices.
Milner sale. Milner Gardens and Woodland, 2179 West Island Highway in Qualicum Beach, holds its annual fall plant sale Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. The sale features heritage trees, shrubs and perennials propagated on site. Master gardeners will be on hand to offer advice and there will be tea, soup and scones available in the tearoom. Entry is by donation, with proceeds going to support this Vancouver Island University facility.
