Overwatered sweet potato vine is the issue that will show different causes and harm the plant in various ways. Certain symptoms can let you know you need to back down on your watering regime but may even point out some other issues.
In this article, we’re going to clarify how you’ll know that you’ve gone overboard with watering your sweet potato vines of the Convolvulaceae family. Also, we’re going to help you get your plants back to health as soon as you spot overwatering signs.
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What Are Symptoms of Overwatered Sweet Potato Vines?
The symptoms of overwatered sweet potato vines are leaves turning brown and yellow, in addition the leaves showing a wilted appearance and a curling form. These issues would start to weaken the plant and would cause them stress, and they would be seen from the leaves.
Ipomoea batatas or sweet potato plant is s popular plant, and is widely grown for its beautiful and luscious foliage, but when you water it too much, it would start showing you different issues, and make a problem out of the way that it grows.
Sweet potato plants are susceptible to a range of pests and diseases, but most of them will come from gardeners’ care of the plant, most often than not, has to deal with watering regimes, with overwatering being the most prominent cause of issues. Also, you have to consider your species — ornamental sweet potato vines will take these symptoms far better than fruit-producing vines.
– Leaves Turning Brown and Yellow
Leaves going brown or even yellow are one of the most obvious signs that you’ve overwatered your vines. If the soil is moist and spongy you should stave off your watering for a few days and check how the plant behaves.
Brown leaves may point to issues with fungi like fusarium wilt or root rot, so if the problems persist you may want to separate your plants to prevent the disease from spreading. Also, you’d probably need to resort to pulling out that fungicide sprinkler!
Leaves turning yellow, on the other hand, may indicate a nutrient deficiency — specifically, a lack of nitrogen! If yellow leaves persist after you’ve fixed your watering regime, you may want to add some nitrogen and magnesium-rich fertilizer to the soil!
– Leaf Wilt
Leaf wilt will most likely be directly connected to sweet potatoes’ water problems! Sweet potato vines can do well without water for more than a week and longer! So, if you’ve been overwatering them, they’ll first show it by wilting leaves.
Be mindful, however, as leaf wilt may point out fungi issues such as fusarium or verticillium wilt too! Wilts also cause your plants to droop to the ground and shed leaves, just like overwatering. So, if your wilting problems persist even after you’ve cut back on the water, you may want to cut off those wilting leaves and burn them to prevent the fungi from spreading!
These diseases will more readily attack your fruit-producing plants than ornamental sweet potato vines. In short, don’t worry about giving your vines a few days of breathing time, as cutting back on watering will lower the chances of disease spread.
– Leaf Curl
This symptom is another common overwatering result but may point to a more serious issue. Leaf curl is sometimes caused by a virus disease from the begomovirus group infecting the sweet potato family!
Also known as the sweeping virus this one is a relatively new and hybrid type of viral sweet potato disease that emerged as a result of progressive and aggressive vegetable and root crop production!
Plants often do not show any signs of disease or symptoms, but will at times begin to curl up and show stunted growth — most often in the summer, exactly when your overwatering issues may appear!
If you notice that your leaves began to curl for no reason, stop giving your sweet potato vine plant water for a few days. If the problem persists even after the first few inches of soil went dry, then you know you probably have a viral disease on your hands.
How To Treat The Potato Vine that Has Been Overwatered?
To treat the potato vine that has been overwatered, you must first locate it properly, and make sure that you schedule the watering sessions. In addition, ensure to mulch the soil so it absorbs the excess humidity, and try to treat the wilt.
However, if you do notice that your plants are still struggling then there are some other measures you need to consider to grow sweet potatoes and ensure overwatering doesn’t become an issue.
When growing your sweet potato vine plants properly, the general growing guide, from standpoint of overwatering, should consider the four crucial survival Items which are weather, season, sun exposure, and others that have an impact on your regime!
– Locate it Properly
Seasonality in weather will have a major influence on how often you’ll need to water your vines. For example, summer is a season when you can expect extended drought periods, so you should watch out for these and be ready to step in.
Conversely, if it’s springtime, there’s a high probability of the rainy season where you should cut back on watering sweet tater plants. Nevertheless, both droughts and rainy seasons can interchange in both seasons.
These plants have strict light requirements — enjoying the full sun and plenty of it. But they won’t cope so well with extreme heat — not without the water, that is. That’s why you should consider a good sunlight position but also be responsible about your watering in such conditions. Don’t allow your vines to burn up by giving them plenty of water, and they will reward you.
When you put your vines close to each other, you risk them exchanging diseases faster! But you’re also risking your plants fighting it out for water. If you’re not ready to double up on your water when giving your plants a refreshment, try to space them out to ensure optimal water intake for all the plants, and your vines don’t intertwine and wilt.
– Schedule Watering
The growing season in general will determine the frequency of your watering too! Much like the weather, the spring season will require at least two to three waterings a week, summer almost on the daily, while you’d want to cut back on this frequency when fall begins and your plants are well established in the garden!
– Mulch the Soil
Mulch the soil instead and make sure that it doesn’t lose moisture as fast as you think it did — this will help you feel safe knowing that the soil keeping moisture from your last watering.
If your potato vine seems to be overwatered and the soil is soggy and waterlogged, you want to step back and cut on your watering until you see the soil get back some of the hardiness. If you’re afraid that now is the time for watering, you may want to think twice.
– Treating Wilt
Wilt and other fungal or bacterial diseases are symptoms that will likely come with an overwatered and weakened plant. If you notice that wilt has begun to set in with your potato vine, then there are a few things you need to do about it.
You’d want to treat your plants with some sort of fungicide to make sure that the spores are killed off. The fungicides are sometimes aggressive when store-bought, so you’d probably want to go with a homemade concoction — neem oil or baking soda are perfect fungicides and work well when mixed with water and sprayed on plants.
If the wilt has already set in, cut back all the infected leaves and stem parts and then apply your fungicide.
Conclusion
Sweet potatoes are beautiful plants that bear the delicious tubers we all love so much. You can either grow these for their ornamental value or as crops, but both will come with the same set of problems, so let’s see what we had gone through in this article:
- Your overwatered plant comes with a standard set of problems like moist soil and wilting plant. However, if you notice that your plants have the same symptoms even after cutting back on the water, then fungal disease may be your next worry.
- If you’re dealing with fungal diseases, these will almost always be connected to wilts. You can treat them with regular fungicides and cut any damaged plant parts.
- To prevent fungal diseases and overwatering, always adjust your watering regime and mulch the soil instead of watering your plants daily!
Now that you know what set of problems are coming with overwatered potato vines, you’ll surely be a much better sweet potato grower!
