When the Lubera® breeding team started breeding sweet potatoes a few years ago, the original and real focus was on improved, sweeter yielding varieties for hobby cultivation in the vegetable garden. During the selection work in the seedlings, however, we quickly noticed that the diversity in leaf colour and shape was quite large. Thus, it became clear relatively quickly that it was also worthwhile to select for these characteristics. This is what we did and we are just about to release the first varieties of our Sugarbeauty® sweet potato series.
What is our definition of ornamental sweet potatoes?
Because of their decorative foliage, ornamental sweet potatoes have so far mainly been used in the field of 'bedding & balcony plants', as structure-giving foliage plants. Although most of these 'pure' ornamental varieties also produce edible tubers, they are usually no more than a slightly thickened, fleshy root. After all, they are ornamental varieties and not yield-producing varieties.
We are now going a step further. For us, the ornamental value of the sweet potatoes is also in the foreground, be it due to the colour of the leaves, the shape of the leaves or the length of the shoots. Sweet potatoes do not have to show strong shoot growth like some yielding varieties; we also have selections that shine with a shoot length of only 40 cm. Nevertheless, we always look at the yield and the tuber set. The aforementioned compact selections were convincing with a yield of around one kilogram per plant. This is less than a third of the yielding varieties, but quite respectable for a plant with a shoot length of only 40 cm.
Parallel testing in the field and in pots
Admittedly, we are still talking about ornamental sweet potatoes, but here too the actual selection work takes place in the field, together with all the other candidate varieties and the reference varieties. After all, we also see our Sugarbeauties® as an ornamental plant for beds. Moreover, it is easier to assess the yield in the field than in a pot, for example. Nevertheless, we have all Sugarbeauty® candidates in pots this year. This way we can test them in different locations at the same time and find out whether they are suitable for pots or containers, allowing us to also determine any differences in yield.
Why do we need new ornamental sweet potatoes?
This question will certainly be asked by some people, and rightly so. So why are we dealing with this now? This question can be answered quite quickly and simply: we think that there are currently not enough good varieties on the European market that have both ornamental value and yield. This statement was chosen carefully because in the past years we have always tested all available ornamental sweet potatoes in parallel to our own varieties, candidate varieties and seedlings and had to realise with disillusionment that only some varieties perform as they are supposed to according to the variety description.
That is why we decided to pursue ornamental sweet potatoes in addition to sweet yielding varieties in both breeding and selection. And with success! We expect to present our Sugarbeauty® range to the world at the International Plant Fair IPM 2024 in Essen, Germany.
Sugarbeauties – the top favourites
We would like to present you our current top favourites.
2006/097
- Semi-compact growth, slightly overhanging
- Dark green foliage, sometimes more, sometimes less overlaid with red, but always with striking purple leaf veins
- Good flowering variety
2006/136
- Very compact growth
- Dark green, five-lobed leaves
- Healthy and beautiful
- Good yield
2001/013
- Semi-compact growth, slightly overhanging
- Nice foliage, evenly five-lobed, dark green with a touch of red and purple leaf veins and petioles
- Very beautiful overall impression
2002/039
- Semi-compact and overhanging habit
- Very decorative contrast of dark red petioles and leaf veins with green leaves
- Many and large, showy flowers, the top favourite among the flowering varieties
2005/077
- Semi-compact growth, slightly overhanging
- Very beautiful, strongly incised foliage
- Many beautiful flowers
- Extraordinary yield
The difference between Sugaroots® and Sugarbeauties®
What are the differences between Sugaroot® yielding sweet potatoes and Sugarbeauty® ornamental sweet potatoes?
Sugaroot® sweet potatoes
- Yielding varieties, > 2 kg yield/plant
- Sweeter taste than standard varieties
- Vigorous growing
- Bred and selected in Central Europe
Sugarbeauty® sweet potatoes
- High ornamental value due to different leaf colours and shapes
- Reduced to compact growth, < 100 cm shoot length (usually not more than 80 cm)
- Good and uniform yield
- Selected for the Central European climate
Market launch and availability
Currently, we are in the final phase of selection for ornamental value. This year's harvest, and with it the yield evaluation and selection, will probably not take place for another three to four weeks. After the final tasting, we will decide on an initial Sugarbeauty® assortment and then present it to the international trade public – just in time for the IPM 2024.
Starting in spring 2025, young plants will then be available for all interested producers. However, we will be able to make small numbers available for testing purposes as early as spring 2024.
