About three weeks ago I bought two red sweet potatoes and put them still in their clear plastic produce bag on top of the microwave, intending to bake them in a few days. (They bake much better at room temperature than straight out of the frige.)

So, they sat there as days passed. Today I opened the bag, and they had sprouted. One had a few sprouts; the other had a top knot of thick sprouts with shriveled little leaves, on the verge of dying. I couldn't eat that one--anything so willing to live deserved a chance.

I ran tap water over the tater and its sprouts and wedged the bottom of the tater into a glass half full of water and sat it in the kitchen window. Almost immediately the tiny green leaves opened up, and the submerged part looks like roots were wanting to grow. Wow. Just that fast. The power of water is remarkable.

If you've ever grown a sweet potato in a glass, you know they will put out looong leafy vines and I guess I'll have to figure out a place for it among the other plants on my kitchen table--the only place in the house with the correct mixture of sunlight and shade. But no matter, I'll enjoy seeing it grow.

susil