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North Carolina State Vegetables
Sweet Potato
Adopted in 1995
The sweet potato was officially designated the State Vegetable by the General Assembly of 1995. (Session Laws, 1995, c. 521).
Students at a Wilson County school petitioned the North Carolina General Assembly for the establishment of the sweet potato as the Official State Vegetable. North Carolina is the largest producer of sweet potatoes in the nation, harvesting over four billion pounds of the vegetable in 1989. The sweet potato is high in vitamins A and C and low in fat and was grown in North Carolina before the European colonization of North America.
Several decades ago when orange flesh sweet potatoes were introduced in the southern United States producers and shippers desired to distinguish them from the more traditional white flesh types. The African word "nyami" referring to the starchy, edible root of the Dioscorea genus of plants was adopted in its English form, "yam". Yams in the US are actually sweet potatoes with relatively moist texture and orange flesh. Although the terms are generally used interchangeably,
the US Department of Agriculture requires that the label "yam" always be accompanied by "sweet potato." The following information outlines several differences between sweet potatoes and yams.
FACTOR
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SWEET POTATO
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YAM
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| Scientific name |
Ipomoea batatas
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Dioscorea Species |
| Plant family |
Morning glory
CONVOLVULACEAE
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Yam
DIOSCOREACEAE |
| Plant group |
Dicotyledon
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Monocotyledon |
| Chromosome number |
2n=90 (hexaploid)
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2n=20 |
| Flower character |
Monoecious
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Dioecious |
Historical beginning
(Peru, Ecuador) |
Prehistoric
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50,000 BC |
| Edible storage organ |
Storage root
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Tuber |
| Number/plant |
4-10
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1-5 |
| Appearance |
Smooth, with thin skin
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Rough, scaly skin |
| Shape |
Short, blocky,
tapered ends
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Long, cylindrical,
some with "toes" |
| Dry matter |
22-28%
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20-35% |
| Mouth feel |
Moist*
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Dry |
| Taste |
Sweet*
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Starchy |
| Beta carotene (Vitamin A) |
High (orange varieties) *
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Very low |
| Propagation |
Transplants/vine cuttings
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Tuber pieces |
| Growing season |
90-150 days
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180-360 days |
| Climatic requirements |
Tropical and temperate Tropical |
| Availability |
Grown in USA
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Imported from Caribbean |
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*Characteristic of most sweet potato varieties grown in the US
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50 State Resource Guide
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