What are Companion Planting?
Companion planting refers to growing two or more different types of plants together in order to provide better crop yields. There are many benefits when using companion planting. These include increased yield, reduced pesticide use, less water usage and pest problems. Some of these benefits may not apply to all varieties of plants but they will certainly benefit from it.
Potato Companion Plants: What Are They Good For?
Sweet potatoes are one of the most popular crops grown in America. It is also known as yams or yellow bananas. They have been cultivated since ancient times and they were first introduced into Europe during the 16th century. Today, there are over 1 billion pounds of sweet potatoes produced each year worldwide! Most people don’t realize that sweet potatoes are edible even without cooking them! Sweet potatoes are a good source of dietary fiber, vitamins A and C, potassium and manganese. They contain high levels of beta carotene which helps prevent eye diseases such as cataracts. They also contain vitamin B6 which plays an important role in the production of red blood cells.
Sweet potatoes are very nutritious and they can be used to make delicious dishes like pancakes, waffles, muffins or breads. You can eat sweet potatoes raw or cooked. If you want to increase your energy levels, you should eat sweet potatoes more often.
Sweet potatoes contain substances that can help prevent a wide range of diseases. They can help increase your lifespan and lower your risk of getting heart disease, some types of cancer, stroke, diabetes and arthritis. Sweet potatoes are the perfect food for people of all ages including babies, children and adults.
Research has shown that sweet potatoes can help reduce the risk of colon cancer when eaten regularly. They also contain compounds that can prevent blood clots, lower cholesterol levels and reduce inflammation in the body.
In order to get the most health benefits from sweet potatoes you should eat the skin as well. The nutritional value is slightly reduced if you peel the skin off before eating them. It is best to eat them fresh since cooking can destroy some of their vitamin content.
There are many different varieties of sweet potatoes and they vary considerably in color. The most common varieties are the Beauregard and the Charlotte. The Beauregard is lighter in color and more oval in shape with pale yellow skin and light yellow flesh. It has thin, soft skin, especially when compared to other varieties. The Charlotte variety is also known as the Sweet Mama or White Sweet Potato.
It is the most popular variety in the United States and it has a smooth, rounded appearance, almost like a small butterball. The skin color can range from creamy white to light tan. Its flesh is pale yellow with little dark specks and a snow white interior.
How to Plant: Sweet potatoes are best grown using the hill system. Dig furrows about two feet wide and place your seeds at a depth of four inches. Cover with soil and water generously. Place four foot poles at intervals of five feet and attach twine at heights of three feet, six feet and nine feet.
Sources & references used in this article:
Why Is the Pueraria a Sweet Potato? by M Strathern – Ethnology, 1969 – JSTOR
Great garden companions: a companion-planting system for a beautiful, chemical-free vegetable garden by SJ Cunningham – 2000 – books.google.com
The bamboo raft as a key to the introduction of the sweet potato in prehistoric Polynesia by R Langdon – 2001 – Taylor & Francis
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