This is a really nice article @ppmsilver. My partner was talking just today about wanting to start sweet potatoes. We had some for dinner, and like you said.. delicious. I appreciate the tips about the slips and waiting for the roots to be 2 inches long. It is very helpful to know details as we understand the basic concept but have never grown slips before. Is constant heat source a must? What do you think about keeping it near the wood stove which is on part of the day and off part of the day?
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Keeping slips near the wood stove is a fall back method I haven't depended on yet. The slips form too slowly at 70F and I don't know if temperature variation from 70 to 80F would have the same effect. You definitely don't want the temperature to drop below 60F. Warmer than 80F to maybe 90F is likely not a problem for this heat loving plant. Too near the wood stove could be a problem. I use those 10x20 inch heat mats that go under pans full of tomato and pepper starts that like it warm. The heat from the sun shining on them probably helps too and might be contained with a clear enclosure. Glad you liked the article
Thanks for your thoughts on this :) We are on solar and the heating mats draw a lot from the batteries as I experienced last year with starting peppers and tomatoes, hence why I am brainstorming creative solutions!
Maybe a clear enclosure in the sun of a window to heat up in the day. The water in the jars will act as a heat sink. You could add some bricks in there for more thermal mass to hold the heat longer, and maybe add warmed bricks as needed at night. Could cover it with an insulating blanket at night to keep the heat in. Just thinking out loud... Making sure the enclosure doesn't get to hot inside will be important. Posed a private question regarding shop setup earlier on discord. Cheers.