A review on sweet potato with special focus on Hungarian production I : utilization, biology and transplant production

Sweet potato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.] is a root crop plant of tropical-subtropical origin which is widely produced in the temperate zone, too. Along with several European countries, it is also grown in Hungary for decades but the increase of its growing area was stimulated by the continuously increasing consumers’ demand in the last couple of years. Despite the available cultivation guides and experiences, yield stability is still not fully solved, growing site- and genotype-specific recommendations are still missing. Due to the lack of severe plant health problems detected until our days, a Pathogen Tested (PT) scheme for the production of sweet potato planting material has not been organized yet. With the increase of the growing area, however, the occurrence of various diseases and even that of leaf and root pests is expected, possibly in a short period. Thus, the stabilization of sweet potato among the cultivated plants in Hungary will require the establishing of a PT scheme for the country’s conditions, as far as possible, under the control of the responsible supervisory organizations