What's causing these tiny holes in my sweet potato leaves?
The leaves have tiny little holes, approximately one-eighth inch in diameter. Do you know what could be causing the holes? A: I’ll give you three choices: golden tortoise beetle, potato flea beetle and one of the looper caterpillars. All three love sweet potato leaves. My vote goes to tortoise beetle.
What causes holes in potatoes after harvest?
On harvesting potatoes, sweet potatoes, and other tubers and corms (e.g., gladiolus and dahlias), show holes or tunnels. Other crops such as onions may show scars. Season: The problems become evident at harvest time. Cause: The cause of the problem are the larvae of either the “click’ beetle or the tuber flea beetle.
Are there worms in my sweet potatoes?
Answer: Wireworms or tuber flea beetles may affect various root crops, especially potatoes, sweet potatoes and onions. On harvesting potatoes, sweet potatoes, and other tubers and corms (e.g., gladiolus and dahlias), show holes or tunnels.
What are the tiny black beetles on my sweet potatoes?
Long hind legs for jumping give metallic-bronze or black potato flea beetles their name. Usually less that 1/10 inch long, the adult beetles infest sweet potato vines in spring, chewing tiny holes in their new leaves.
Is it bad if sweet potatoes have holes?
When it comes to pithy sweet potatoes, as long as the inside of the potato has only a few holes here and there, it should be perfectly safe to eat. If the holes are all over the place, throw it away to be safe. That sweet potato probably isn't spoiled, but it will taste bad, so there's no point in cooking it.
Is it normal for potatoes to have holes?
Cavities in the center of potato tubers that appear healthy on the outside are caused by a condition known as 'hollow heart'. The cavities are irregular or angular in shape and have brown edges. This is associated with rapidly growing tubers.
How do you stop holes in potatoes?
Wireworm traps can be helpful. Take an ordinary potato and cut into halves or quarters for a large one. Skewer the potato and place a couple of inches (5cm) under the soil. These should attract the worms and after a fortnight or so remove them to the bin or chicken run.
Do sweet potatoes have worms?
Wireworms bore shallow holes into the surface of sweet potato roots. Multiple species of wireworm can attack sweet potato. Wireworms are the immatures of click beetles and are cylindrical, yellowish-orange with brown heads and tail. They are smooth and relatively hard.
What does a wireworm look like?
Description of the Pest Adult wireworms are slender, reddish brown to black click beetles that are 0.25 to 0.5 inch long. The larvae are wirelike, having hard bodies that are slender, cylindrical, yellowish to brown in color, and about 0.75 inch long when full grown.
How do you keep worms from eating sweet potatoes?
Worm Management The best way to manage them is to not plant sweet potatoes in infected soil. Wireworms are more likely to occur in soil that previously had clover or alfalfa crops. You can detect the presence of wireworms using bait made from carrots, pieces of potato and untreated corn.
What bug is eating my sweet potatoes?
The sweet potato root can be injured by several soil insects including: the sweet potato weevil, rootworms, wireworms, white grubs, whitefringed beetles and flea beetles. The sweet potato weevil larva is the only insect that tunnels throughout the root.
How do you get rid of wireworms in potatoes?
Growers are entering their first season without granular organophosphate insecticide Mocap (ethoprophos), which has been the most effective wireworm control agent for many years.
How do you get rid of weevils on sweet potatoes?
Pheromone-baited traps (such as Pherocon Unitraps) are found to be effective in reducing the weevil numbers and the damage due to sweet potato weevil. Pheromone lures are effective for 8 weeks and are most effective in a 50 meter radius. A density of 100 traps per acre eliminates damage on root tubers.
Do sweet potatoes get potato bugs?
Sweet Potato Flea Beetle Larvae make small winding tunnels just under the skin of sweet potato roots. These tunnels are nearly invisible at first but soon darken and can be seen through skin. As roots grow, the skin over the tunnels splits away, leaving shallow scars on the surface.
Why should sweet potatoes be cured?
Farmers should cure their sweet potato crop for a period of time to ensure the correct taste and a longer shelf life. “Sweet potatoes remain metabolically active after they are harvested,” Francis said. “As the tubers continue the respiration process, their starches are converted to sugars, hence the sweet taste.”.
When should sweet potatoes be removed from the field?
The curing process can begin immediately after sweet potatoes are harvested. First, remove them from the field as soon as possible to prevent sunscald damage.
What temperature should sweet potatoes be stored at?
After sweet potatoes have cured for the correct amount of time, they should be stored at an approximate temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit and a relative humidity range of 85-90 percent, Francis said.
How to prevent sunscald damage when harvesting potatoes?
First, remove them from the field as soon as possible to prevent sunscald damage. “If you are harvesting during moist conditions, allow the soil around the roots to dry for an hour or two,” Francis said. “Though you can remove excess soil around the roots, remember not to wash freshly harvested potatoes.”.
How long do sweet potatoes last?
Francis said sweet potatoes stored in cool, constant conditions have a shelf life of up to several months.
What is inside a potato?
To our surprise, the insides of the potatoes were full of holes or cavities. There was also a small amount of milky white substance that would gather in tiny droplets around the edge of the cut.
How long do potatoes cure?
If it is 80 degrees Fahrenheit outside, let the potatoes cure for up to 10 days, he said. Good ventilation is also important in the curing process, as it can prevent a buildup of the carbon dioxide that is released by the tubers. The circulation of air also enables excess condensation to escape, which prevents rotting.
What zone do sweet potato vines grow in?
If you're in U. S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9 through 11, where sweet potato vines are perennials, expect to battle one or the other of them throughout the year.
Is sweet potato vine perennial?
If you're in U. S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9 through 11, where sweet potato vines are perennials, expect to battle one or the other of them throughout the year.
Do cabbage loopers attack sweet potato vines?
In Mediterranean climates, cabbage loopers attack sweet potato vines all year, with their activity peaking in fall. The white-striped, pale-green caterpillars crawl across the undersides of the leaves by arching their midsections as they draw their front and back ends together. Young loopers strip the foliage down to its veins; older ones feast on flowers as well as leaves.
How do sweet potatoes get sweeter?
Hummi, the potatoes get sweeter as they dry. If you can, store them in an outside building without any heat. The colder temps make for a sweeter potato. Dawson Farms, the biggest sweet potato producer in the states, places all his 1's and 2's in his warehouse that raises the temps to a high heat for a couple of weeks and then drops the temp to just above freezing. This triggers an enzyme in the potato that makes them sweet. He has the best potatoes I've eaten.
Can you store sweet potatoes outside?
If you can, store them in an outside building without any heat. The colder temps make for a sweeter potato. Dawson Farms, the biggest sweet potato producer in the states, places all his 1's and 2's in his warehouse that raises the temps to a high heat for a couple of weeks and then drops the temp to just above freezing.
