Found a bag of potatoes on the lower shelf of my pantry which had grown long stems, so I rescued them from the dark and removed them carefully from the brown plastic bag they came in. I remember you could cut the potatoes, put tooth picks in them and suspend a bit above water and you could see roots grow. Well, some of these already had roots! I followed what I remembered and removed the chunks of the potato that had no eyes or stems already growing and placed them in an irrigated tray. The irrigated tray is a microwave thawing tray for meat that has elevated sections to hold the meat and drainage areas to allow the juices to run off. I filled the drainage area with water right up to the potatoes; I don't have any toothpicks. Maybe I should still get some? Anyway, The stems on some of these babies are around six inches long and they were pale. After being under my grow lights, they have turned purple and are reaching up towards the lights. I also let the sunlight in on them during the day.

At what point can I put them in potting soil? I do not want to grow potatoes, but to have the beautiful vines growing for spring and summer. They will make great compost come fall. I probably have about 20 of the little plants started. Yes, I want to have them on my patio and enjoy them. They have such beautiful leaves. I also plan on doing the sweet potato, too. But, I want to wait until I get more information.

Help is greatly appreciated! - Snappy