Have you ever seen a brown bulb on the ground that looks like a potato? It could be an air potato, an invasive species in Florida.
Potatoes are a delicious and versatile vegetable to grow in your garden. But keeping potato plants properly identified can be tricky when weeds invade. Several common weeds share similar characteristics with potato plants, making it easy to mix the two up. Being able to spot the differences between potatoes and weedy look-alikes will help ensure your crop thrives.
5 Garden Weeds Often Confused With Potato Plants
These 5 pesky weeds are masters of disguise in the garden bed Here’s what to look for to avoid picking them by mistake
1. Hairy Nightshade
With white flowers and egg-shaped leaves, hairy nightshade bears a strong resemblance to potato foliage Identify nightshade by the fine hairs covering its stems and leaves Be aware that nightshade berries are toxic.
2. Bittersweet Nightshade
Closely related to hairy nightshade, bittersweet nightshade has oval, smooth-edged leaves. Its climbing vines and purple and yellow flowers differentiate it from potato plants. All parts of bittersweet nightshade are poisonous.
3. Jimsonweed
Also called devil’s trumpet, jimsonweed has spear-shaped leaves similar in size and shape to potato leaves Look for its large, upright white or purple trumpet-shaped flowers to correctly identify this toxic plant
4. Jerusalem Cherry
Jerusalem cherry is easy to confuse with young potato plants. Giveaways are its smaller oval leaves and bright red berries that emerge in late summer. While not poisonous, Jerusalem cherry fruit is not edible.
5. Black Nightshade
This nightshade variety has lush green leaves, white flowers, and black berries. Leaves are smooth-edged and something tapered compared to the rounded potato leaf. Black nightshade berries are edible when fully ripe.
Key Differences Between Potatoes and Weed Look-Alikes
With so many imposters trying to blend in, focus on these characteristics to pick out the real potato plants:
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Flowers – Potato plants have clusters of white, purple, pink, or lavender delicate flowers. Nightshades have 5-pointed solitary flowers.
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Berries – Potatoes do not produce berries. Finding red or black berries means nightshade.
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Leaves – Potato leaves are oval-shaped with uneven, blunt-toothed edges. Nightshade leaves tend to be more spear or triangle-shaped.
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Stems – Potato stems are thick, rigid, and winged or ridged. Nightshade stems are smooth, thin, and climbing.
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Smell – Crush a potato leaf or stem and it will have an earthy, pungent odor. Nightshades and look-alikes do not smell when crushed.
Tips for Weed Control Among Potato Plants
Preventing weeds from invading potato growing space is key. Here are some tips for keeping imposters at bay:
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At planting, thoroughly prepare soil to remove weed roots and seeds. Dig down 8-12 inches removing all debris.
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Use black plastic mulch at planting to block light and suppress weeds. Cut holes for potato hills.
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Plant potatoes through holes in a 5-6 inch thick layer of straw. The straw blocks light to prevent weed germination.
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In new plantings, carefully hand pull weeds, ensuring you remove the entire root.
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Weed early and often to stop weeds from spreading seeds.
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Hill soil over potato roots as plants grow. This blocks light from reaching emerging weeds.
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Mulch around mature plants with grass clippings or straw. Mulch reduces weed growth.
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Avoid tilling or hoeing deeply mid-season as this brings more weed seeds to the surface. Carefully hand pull weeds instead.
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Rotate potato crop locations annually to prevent weeds from accumulating.
What to Do if You’ve Picked Weeds by Mistake
Oops! If some weedy imposters got harvested along with your potatoes, take these steps:
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Safely discard any questionable plants, berries or foliage. When in doubt, throw it out.
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Do not compost discarded weeds as this can spread seeds. Place in sealed garbage bags.
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Wash all potatoes thoroughly after harvest to remove dirt and weeds.
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Inspect potatoes carefully before cooking or eating. Discard any suspicious pieces.
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When in doubt, do not eat potatoes from a weedy area. Carefully inspect and clean your harvest.
It’s easy to mistake sneaky weeds like nightshade for your potato plants. But learning what makes potatoes unique will help train your eye. Focus on flowers, smell, stems and leaf shape to pick out the pretenders. And implement weed control early and consistently for the healthiest potato crop. With some diligence, you can keep imposters from invading your precious potato patch.
What’s going on?
Air potato is an invasive plant that was introduced to Florida from Africa in the early 1900s. It is a member of the yam family and produces many large aerial bulbils that resemble potatoes. In the spring, air potato vines sprout from underground tubers and bulbils that dropped during the previous growing season. These vines grow very quickly at roughly 8 inches per day and climb to the tops of trees. If the vines go unmanaged, they can smother native trees and understory plant species, limiting their access to sunlight. Air potato is found in urban and natural areas throughout the state, from Escambia County in the panhandle all the way down to the Florida Keys.
Air potato is one of the most aggressive weeds ever introduced to Florida because of its ability to displace native species and disrupt fire cycles and water flow. Therefore, it is listed as a noxious weed by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) and as a Category I invasive plant by the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council. Native plants are important to Florida ecosystems because they provide food and shelter to animals and stability to the ecosystem. If air potato is unmanaged, it can outcompete native plants for resources like sunlight and disrupt ecosystems critical to Florida’s environment and economy.
- Leaves are heart-shaped with a pointed apex
- Stems are smooth and rounded
- Bulbils are light tan and smooth to dark brown and rough
- Size ranges from as small as a pea to as large as a grapefruit
- Tubers resemble bulbils, but are found underground and have remnants of roots on them
Growing and Pruning Potato Plants for Bigger Harvest ! Maximum Production!#potato #garden #gardening
FAQ
What plants are similar to potatoes?
Good substitutes for potatoes include sweet potatoes, cauliflower, turnips, parsnips, and rutabagas. These alternatives offer similar textures and can be used in mashed, roasted, or fried dishes. Cauliflower is a low-carb option, while sweet potatoes provide a slightly sweeter taste and more fiber.
How to get rid of potato weeds?
At harvest, rolled beds can be treated with paraquat or diquat for potato vine kill and to kill nutsedge and other weed foliage to stop further growth immediately. Diquat can be very effective. For vigorous potato varieties that often have late-season growth, two applications, spaced one week apart, may be necessary.
What plant has roots that look like potatoes?
Helianthus tuberosus is a native North American sunflower that grows substantial amounts of ginger-shaped and potato-like tubers that are seemingly esteemed by foodies everywhere on the Earth but North America.
What else grows like potatoes?
The traditional root crops grown in temperate regions are potatoes, parsnips, carrots, beetroot, onions, turnips and swede with lesser-known plants such as Jerusalem artichokes, celeriac, Chinese artichokes, radishes and winter radishes (mooli) playing a minor role. Of these, potatoes are by far the most important.
What does potato weed look like?
The stems of potato weed are often 30 to 60 cm tall and are either erect or may bend upwards at the ends. Potato weed has small yellow flowers with usually five white petals in spring and summer. Potato weed is spread via seed, producing several generations in one year that can remain dormant for some time.
What are the two types of weeds?
The two types of weeds are broadleaf plants and narrow leaf plants. Broadleaf weeds like dandelion or stinging nettle have large leaves and can have taproot or fibrous root systems. Narrow-leaved weeds are grassy plants that grow as tuft-like clumps of grass. Proper weed identification is the first step to removing them.
What is potato weed?
Potato weed is a pest of a number of horticultural crops, particularly irrigated vegetables. Note: Although heliotrope (Heliotropium europaeum) is sometimes known as potato weed, this is an unrelated weed and it is not covered here. The leaves of pigweed are opposite, pale green, oval in shape and are usually toothed and have a pointed tip.
What weed looks like a succulent?
The purslane is another common weed that looks like a succulent. Purslane is an annual herbaceous weed with succulent leaves and stems. This common weed is often found in lawns and among garden plants. Purslane looks similar to dandelions and can differ by the leaves, which are oval-shaped and broadest near the rounded tip.
How big does potato Weed get?
They can range from 12 to 40 mm in width and 20 to 70 mm in length. The stems of potato weed are often 30 to 60 cm tall and are either erect or may bend upwards at the ends. Potato weed has small yellow flowers with usually five white petals in spring and summer.
Where does potato weed grow?
While potato weed prefers damp areas, it will grow in a range of soil types, with varying pH and will grow in semi-shade to full sun. Potato weed is a pest of a number of horticultural crops, particularly irrigated vegetables.