Ipomoea batatas - breeding of Sweet Potato - Camote - New Zealand

[reed]

Any luck getting this thread working Joseph, still dont see new posts 

Yea! this post came through. The ones before still showing the same error but looks like it's working now. Maybe it's ok moving forward from here.

[Richard Watson]

I got a email saying you posted Mark, no idea what you said though.

[Richard Watson]

YAY its working, Thanks Joseph

[Joseph Lofthouse]

Here's the lost posts that were on that broken page. Sorry that I couldn't capture any photos that might have been included.

Hi Richard. Mike didnt really gather seed, he had a shambles of growth, but wow some yield!
I also took eye off ball - Garlic biz booming - but did get 150 odd seed, harvested after frost mid Apr (no time to harvest daily like last year)
And, to be truthful, was annoyed that all last years work harvesting 400 seed, gave us 40 at best seedlings?
Anyways, I did get an Okinawan plant to seed, pretty happy bout that, hopefully crossed with my EFR?
EFR has proven up to 3X yield of NZ Owairaka Red, firmer flesh, sweeter, but skin more prone to harvest damage / scuffing?
Will likey throw a PVR around it, if convinced it has stopped mutating?
Mark - yes those camotes from Mike in Great Barrier Island are the best eaters of camotes, but not up to Owairaka Red or EFR firmness or taste, although this years crop yet to be tasted.
Cheers

The page 28 start at the post 39 at the page 3.

Interesting looking tubers Chris.
How much seed did he manage to get?

There are almost too many separate sweet potato seed threads that it is hard to keep up to date. Would be nice if you all had one master thread.





Is there no way to get seeds from Kumara? I was reading about Edmonds cookbook of Kiwi cuisine after watching the latest dark cake recipe from Glen and Friends cooking on YouTube. Someone said Kumara is not just a sweet potato,  but an epic sweet potato.

But that got me thinking that surely those of you that live down under might have vastly different sweet potato germplasm than we do here in the states.

Chris correct me if I am wrong here but I believe the original strains first bought to these lands where introduced by the first to arrive, they being Ngati Hotu who became known as the 'red headed Maori', DNA has proven they were of Aztec decent they were likely driven out of South America by the Spanish, settling on Easter Island, later arriving here. Those early strain were apparently spindly and yielded poorly. When the Polynesian Maori invaded 100's of years later they were replaced with more productive strains originating from SE Asia


A interesting documentary on the Ngati Hotu as they later became known and how there history has been deliberately being concealed
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBFpGayPATs

I couldn't stand not planting any seeds so I prepped a little spot about two feet wide by ten feet long and scattered 100 seeds. That was less than a week ago and about forty of them have sprouted.

Thats really good germination. Were they all strong seedlings?

The two plants that I had from last summer have come through winter really well, the closest is going to be a runner type while the one in the window a bushy. Also sown a heap of seed from Chris, these will go out into the tunnelhouse in a week or so as its just starting to get warmer in there. Not today though as we have had the deepest snowfall for at least 5 years, all 2cm of it.

The two plants that I had from last summer have come through winter really well, the closest is going to be a runner type while the one in the window a bushy. Also sown a heap of seed from Chris, these will go out into the tunnelhouse in a week or so as its just starting to get warmer in there. Not today though as we have had the deepest snowfall for at least 5 years, all 2cm of it.

Chris correct me if I am wrong here but I believe the original strains first bought to these lands where introduced by the first to arrive, they being Ngati Hotu who became known as the 'red headed Maori', DNA has proven they were of Aztec decent they were likely driven out of South America by the Spanish, settling on Easter Island, later arriving here. Those early strain were apparently spindly and yielded poorly. When the Polynesian Maori invaded 100's of years later they were replaced with more productive strains originating from SE Asia


A interesting documentary on the Ngati Hotu as they later became known and how there history has been deliberately being concealed 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBFpGayPATs

I too like having different threads for SP breeding, makes it easier to track what is happening in the various countries without getting progress from one line mixed up with another line, and when one area has a quite year it is easier to pick up again to continue progress.

As far as Oz goes, most of our germplasm has most likely originated from the USA, certainly what we see in the South East would have its origins there.

I kind of like having the separate threads.  As far as when seeds may be available it might be years but more like very few, certainly not several. 

There are almost too many separate sweet potato seed threads that it is hard to keep up to date. Would be nice if you all had one master thread.

Hopefully someday I will have seeds to grow, but sounds like that may still be several years off.

Is there no way to get seeds from Kumara? I was reading about Edmonds cookbook of Kiwi cuisine after watching the latest dark cake recipe from Glen and Friends cooking on YouTube. Someone said Kumara is not just a sweet potato,  but an epic sweet potato.

But that got me thinking that surely those of you that live down under might have vastly different sweet potato germplasm than we do here in the states.

It also makes me wonder what germplasm one could get from the CIP potato genebank in Peru.

Forty out of 400 isn't bad, the very first time I had seeds I think I had about 25 and out of those if I remember right, I got 3 seedlings and one of those died.

If what I found in research is true they will never really stop mutating, it's just what they do. Supposedly it happens most in the first few seasons after a new one starts from seed but can happen anytime. There are more than 200 "heirloom" varieties for sale in the US and again if the research is true most of those are a product of mutation. Some stuff I've read says that after years or decades, when mutation finally does stop is when vigor and production starts declining.

There is one called Puerto Rico that comes in half a dozen different named variations, and even if you buy it under the same name from two different growers they might be different. It used to be our favorite flavor wise but none of the different versions have ever flowered for me. Some of mine though, are now as good or better than it so I guess it worked out. 

I view the mutation as a good thing. I think any particular plant has tons of genetic diversity locked inside it and the mutation is a way of bringing it out so even if you only have a few kinds to start with, once you have seeds those variations start to come out. The standard here is that they have to clone true for three years to be considered a new stable kind. I'm not sure what that really means though. For example if you have a root that sprouts two different kinds, one like the root one one different, does the process start over or can you just ignore the different one? I didn't really believe the mutation thing until I saw it with my onw eyeballs.

What are EFR and PVR?

Hi Richard. Mike didnt really gather seed, he had a shambles of growth, but wow some yield!
I also took eye off ball - Garlic biz booming - but did get 150 odd seed, harvested after frost mid Apr (no time to harvest daily like last year)
And, to be truthful, was annoyed that all last years work harvesting 400 seed, gave us 40 at best seedlings?
Anyways, I did get an Okinawan plant to seed, pretty happy bout that, hopefully crossed with my EFR?
EFR has proven up to 3X yield of NZ Owairaka Red, firmer flesh, sweeter, but skin more prone to harvest damage / scuffing?
Will likey throw a PVR around it, if convinced it has stopped mutating?
Mark - yes those camotes from Mike in Great Barrier Island are the best eaters of camotes, but not up to Owairaka Red or EFR firmness or taste, although this years crop yet to be tasted.
Cheers

[Richard Watson]

Its ok about the photos

[reed]

Back in business, yea!

[Richard Watson]

A report - I have two new seedlings up so far from Chris's seed to go with the two wintered over plants from last summer, no flowers at all on these two, maybe they might start producing these once the warmth increases

[Chris Morrison]

Just planted 230 EFR seed and 6 Okinawan seed (was amazed to get these setting seed)
Each were given 22 hours soak in Battery Acid, by way of scarification.
Lets see if I can do better than 5% strike like last year :-)
Also put EFR and Okinawan roots in soil for slip production, maybe a little late, but has been quite cold here.

[reed]

I forgot what EFR means? What about Okinawan, is that a variety name?

Battery acid, eek! Although I remember reading that some use concentrated sulfuric acid for that purpose.

[Chris Morrison]

Yes Sulphuric acid - sourced from an old battery, as hard to buy new stuff during lockdown in NZ.
Mike T, on Great Barrier Island, did the same, although with 40 odd seed.
There are many articles on its use for stratifying Camote seed.
EFR is Early Flowering Red - my mutation from our 'native' Owairaka Red, a very firm, very sweet NZ icon.
Okinawan is yes from Okinawa. Pale skin, purple speckled inside. Amazing eating, but sets roots wayyyy aways from the crown, so hoping to breed a short-truss of these. https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/homed/garden/93034036/king-of-kumara

Reed - when soaking the seed, some sunk, others floated. Have you a theory on the viability of either? My crude analysis was the lighter colored ones floated, the jet black ones sunk.

[reed]

Reed - when soaking the seed, some sunk, others floated. Have you a theory on the viability of either? My crude analysis was the lighter colored ones floated, the jet black ones sunk.

I think generally seeds that sink are better that those that float but that's in water. At least that's how I separate them when saving something like tomatoes or melons.

In sweet potatoes I definitely think the dark black ones are the best but as long as they are well formed, not shrunken or wrinkled looking, they sill still sprout.

I've never used any kind of stratification at all. In the first couple years germination was 5% at best. Now direct seeding in the ground they sprout, I'm guessing around 50%, maybe a little more. Also a lot of volunteers showing up in recent years. I quit starting them inside a few years ago in favor if the unheated cold frame but may soon move to only direct seeded.

[Richard Watson]

In theory the only reason a seed floats is it has air inside, this is how I process most of my seed by floating off the inferior hollow seed plus the chaff.

Another seedling up yesterday, a red leaf type like seedling # 2

[Richard Watson]

Now have total of five new seedlings along with the two from last summer, a bushy green leaf and a running purple, the purple has heaps of flower buds ready for when they go outside in a few weeks, hopefully the weather will be warming up, still very changeable spring like atm

[reed]

Now have total of five new seedlings along with the two from last summer, a bushy green leaf and a running purple, the purple has heaps of flower buds ready for when they go outside in a few weeks, hopefully the weather will be warming up, still very changeable spring like atm

I'm guessing if it's a runner with lots of buds that there are just a few per cluster but a cluster at nearly every leaf joint. I hope so as those generally make very nice seed. They set fewer overall than the more bushy ones, which have more per cluster but a higher % of them matures well and much higher % has a full 4 seeds per capsule. 

[Richard Watson]

I'm guessing if it's a runner with lots of buds that there are just a few per cluster but a cluster at nearly every leaf joint.

Yes, three per cluster, cluster at every leaf joint.

Seem to get get a new seedling every second day now, and all purple leaf too. Weather has turned summery in the last few days, so they wont be far off getting there feet into the ground.