Ornamental Ipomoea batatas in near-black and chartreuse — the fastest foliage spiller for summer pots — sold in ready-made mixed baskets with black petunias. Loves heat, needs daily water in a pot, and gets cut back hard whenever it swamps its neighbors.
Ornamental sweet potato vine is the one trailing plant that grows faster in a Queen Creek July than it does anywhere else: heart- or hand-shaped leaves in lime-chartreuse or purple-black on stems that lengthen several inches a day in the heat, pouring over the rim of a pot. It pairs with almost anything in a summer container, and it forgives everything except drought and frost.
We carry it as a ready-made hanging basket combining black and green sweet potato vine with black-and-white petunias. Daily water in summer, a big pot, and shears. Toxic to pets if eaten in quantity. The rest of the color tables are on our Annual Flowers & Foliage page.
This is the sweet potato vine we commonly carry. Availability changes week to week and season to season, so call (480) 987-3308 or stop in to see what’s on the bench today.
A ready-made hanging basket: near-black ‘Blackie’-type and chartreuse ‘Margarita’-type sweet potato vine with black-and-white petunias. Move it to a 16-inch container by June or expect to water twice a day.
Looking for one that isn’t listed? Ask — we can usually suggest a close match or tell you when it tends to come around.
The care tag was written somewhere else. This is the Queen Creek version.
Set out from mid-March, after frost and once nights are above 50°F, through July. It grows slowly in cool weather and explosively once days pass 90°F, and is killed by the first frost in late November. A basket bought in March is at its best from May to October.
A sweet potato vine in a 12-inch basket in June drinks it dry by afternoon. Water daily from May, twice on hot windy days, or move it to a 16-inch or larger container. It wilts dramatically when dry and recovers within an hour of watering; repeated wilting scorches the leaf edges. Drip on a timer is the sane approach.
A quality potting mix and a balanced fertilizer at half strength every two weeks — it is a heavy feeder in full growth. It forms edible tubers in the pot by fall; they are bland but harmless.
Full sun to afternoon shade. Chartreuse forms color best in sun; the near-black forms hold their color in either. In a west-facing spot in July, afternoon shade reduces the watering burden.
Whenever the vine swamps its neighbors or reaches the ground, cut it back by half with shears. It regrows within a week and the companions get their light back. Cuttings root in water in days.
Flea beetles and caterpillars chew holes in the leaves; usually cosmetic, hand-pick or use Bt for caterpillars. Whiteflies on crowded patios. Frost kills the top; tubers can be stored and replanted. Toxic to cats and dogs if eaten in quantity.
Snap a photo of the spot — sun direction, wall color, pot size — and we’ll pick a season-correct combination with you. Advice is free.
Annuals succeed or fail on what’s under them. We stock planting mix and compost for beds, potting mix for containers, bloom fertilizers including Tony’s Magic Mix and Magic Flower, starter fertilizer, drip fittings and frost cloth for the cold nights. The pottery yard has glazed and terracotta pots from 4-inch to whiskey-barrel size, window boxes and hanging baskets, and soil and mulch is sold by the bag or by the yard.
Daily in summer for a basket, twice on hot windy days. A larger pot or drip on a timer makes it manageable.
Cut it back by half with shears. It regrows in a week. Do this as often as needed all summer.
Yes — it thrives in heat and sun as long as it has water. Afternoon shade just reduces the watering.
Flea beetles or caterpillars. The damage is cosmetic on a plant that grows this fast; hand-pick caterpillars or use Bt.
They are edible but bland and stringy compared with a food variety. Most people compost them or store them to replant.
It is toxic to cats and dogs if eaten in quantity. Hang baskets out of reach.
Sweet Potato Vine live on the annuals tables; any staff member can point you to them. Locally owned, and a short drive from San Tan Valley, Gilbert, Chandler and Mesa.