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Today’s topic is sweet potatoes. But take the marshmallow; These sweet potatoes are not for the table. For summer gardens, however, ornamental sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) make a beautiful, reliable addition. They thrive in the intense heat of summer, and May through August is the perfect time to add them to your landscape.Interest in ornamental sweet potatoes has skyrocketed over the past decade. The Sweet Caroline line comes in five colors: green-yellow, purple, red, light green, and bronze. therefore. Blackie was the first decorative sweet potato that became widely known. It’s been around for quite some time – the Botanical Garden started growing it in the late 1980s, but it wasn’t until the 90s that the popularity and availability of the ornamental sweet potato increased. With the wide availability in nurseries and the growing popularity of plants with attractive foliage, interest in this garden plant has skyrocketed. And new varieties with new properties are making ornamental sweet potatoes more versatile than ever in the landscape.Not for consumptionLike the edible versions, ornamental sweet potatoes are vines associated with early morning, but these ornamental plants are grown strictly for attractive foliage. A common question is, “Do they produce edible sweet potatoes?” The answer is no. They produce sweet potatoes, but the quality is too bad to be eaten. These easy-to-grow plants work well as a low-lying planter, summer groundcover, in hanging baskets and other containers, or trained to climb into a stand. Growth on these trees is very vigorous once they are established, although newer cultivars have been selected to be more compact and less fruitful. These types of enthusiasms are not the best choice for small beds, pots, or detail work, as they will grow faster in those cases. Choose varieties that grow smaller for those spots.Colorful foliageOrnamental sweet potatoes will usually not flower under normal garden conditions, although more reliable flowering sweet potato varieties are bound to appear in the nursery eventually. The lavender flowers, lilies are pretty small if produced in large enough quantities. You tend to see them in late summer or fall.The colorful foliage is the big show, and it’s produced until the first frost, at which point these plants hibernate. plants go into hibernation – hibernate, not die. Once planted, ornamental sweet potatoes will usually regrow from their perennial roots. Ornamental sweet potatoes grow best and have the most color in places with about six hours of direct sunlight or more. They will grow in more shade, but the vines will not be as vigorous and the colors may not be as vibrant. That said, I really like shade grown Margaritas. In full sun, the color has a bright yellow-green hue, while, with some shade, the color is more subdued. And with their rapid growth, a decline in vitality isn’t always a bad thing.Insects to trackAlthough relatively carefree, there are a few issues to watch out for. Pest problems include the sweet potato borer – a caterpillar that gnaws holes in the leaves – and the sweet potato whitefly. (Sevin). Sweet potato whitefly can be controlled with Year-round Spray (under the leaves in the early morning when it is cool), bifenthrin or Malathion. In our area, caterpillars are quite common, but whiteflies in general are not. In Louisiana, the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry distributes ornamental sweet potatoes into areas where sweet potato weevils and commercially grown sweet potatoes are regulated by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry. This concerns parishes located in the northeastern part of the state. In the New Orleans area, we are not affected by this. Margarita, known for its lemon green or green heart-shaped leaves; Tri-colored, with light green, pink and white foliage; and Black Beauty and Ace of Spades. Both have dark purple heart-shaped leaves. The Sweet Caroline line of ornamental sweet potatoes was selected at the JC Raulston Arboretum in North Carolina and released in the early 2000s. There are five colors in the series: yellow-green, purple, red, light green and bronze. All colors have deeply lobed leaves similar to Blackie.Newer cultivarsRecently released ornamental sweet potato varieties have a variety of leaf shapes and growth habits in addition to new foliage colors. Many of these sweet potatoes were selected because of the shorter stem length between the leaves and reduced tuber size. Therefore, they are more compact than the old ornamental sweet potato varieties. The Sweet Caroline Sweetheart variety (with heart-shaped leaves) comes in light green, red, and purple, while the standalone Bewitched variety has a maple leaf shape. Introduced in 2009, the Sidekick line by Syngenta Flowers comes in black and lime colors with different leaf shapes. The lime variety is lighter in color than the lime green leaves of Margarita, and the growth behavior is low growing and less spreading. Desana is another series with new colors, leaf shapes and compact types. The new Illusion Series from Proven Winners is perhaps the most unique of the new intros to date. They have fibrous foliage, which is much smaller and less vigorous than others on the market. Illusion is named Emerald Lace, Midnight Lace and Garnet Lace. The landscape performance of these and other cultivars is currently being evaluated by the LSU AgCenter at the Hammond Research Station. Try some ornamental sweet potatoes in your landscape this summer and let me know what you think.DAN GILL’S MAILBOXSweet potato caterpillars – a type of leaf borer – are a common problem in ornamental sweet potato plants.Do you know what might be eating the leaves of our sweet potato plants? If so, can you suggest a treatment? Thank you.Greg and Paulette SmithThis is damage caused by sweet potato greenworm, a common caterpillar on ornamental sweet potatoes. Trees usually only grow faster than damage they grow too quickly. However, when control is needed, you can use any insecticide that is labeled to control ornamental moths, such as BT, spinosad, permethrin, bifenthrin, and carbaryl. Get under the leaves when you spray. ******** Read more: how to turn your phone into a projector without a magnifying glassWhat the hell are these little beasts growing in webs on my tomato plants and stakes? I have never, ever had them before.Sybil BergeronSpider mites feed on the sap of tomato plants and cause the foliage to rot, become discolored and unhealthy. Spider mites are the small, pale red seeds you see in spider webs and clustered on the ends of stakes. Notice how unhealthy the tomato’s larger leaves look. Spider mites eat tree sap and make foliage rotten, discolored and unhealthy. Tomato vines are not always formed, but are more common when tomato populations are high – and this population is particularly high. Spider mites are one of the reasons why marigolds should not be planted around tomato plants. Marigolds are very susceptible to spider mites, and they often migrate onto tomatoes from there. The least toxic solution is to spray the plants with light oil (Year-Oil and other brands) a few times according to the instructions on the label. Do this early in the morning, when it’s cooler. Malathion is also very effective in controlling red spider mites and many other vegetable-eating insects. Apply two or three applications according to the instructions on the label (also, check the label for the waiting time between handling and harvesting). Do not apply Sevin/Carbaryl, as this can make the spider mites heavier. ********I bought an oleander bush recently. When I got home, a neighbor told me that the oleander is a plant that is poisonous to children and pets. Is this correct? I have a Dachshund that loves to run around my trees.Carol LoweryYes this is the truth. The oleander is one of the more poisonous plants we usually plant in our landscape. I don’t recommend growing them on school grounds or amusement parks. However, a lot of the plants in our landscape are poisonous. The rhododendrons you see growing everywhere are potentially deadly to people and pets, and there are many more. So no chance of harming your dog, considering how many yards with dogs with raccoons in them should be no problem. Won’t hurt your dog being around oleander bushes or rubbing against it. The leaves must be chewed and consumed. However, I love my pets, and I know what it’s like. If you don’t feel comfortable growing it now and know it’s toxic, at least I don’t blame you. Most of the dog poisoning cases that I know of are from sago palm trees. The female plant produces seeds in late winter and spring that dogs will readily consume, and it is often fatal. Anyone with female sorghum should carefully collect and dispose of the seeds to prevent tragic poisonings in dogs. ******** Dan Gill is an extension horticulturalist for the LSU Agricultural Center. -Picayune Living Section3800 Howard Ave.New Orleans 70125-1429 Email [email protected]. Please include phone number.Read more: How To Survive 2 & coli; Guide to managing character equipment and XP