I’ve never had luck with sweet potatoes: The plants seem to grow fairly well, but don’t produce more potatoes. IIRC, I started them in early April. The soil they were in was moderately light, but did have composted Hickory debris* in it, so, the juglone content may have dinged them. Do you suppose that they would grow in Ohio River sand mixed with light garden soil? I could go get some sand. (It is very fine, almost a silt.) I don’t know what variety my plants were, last go-round they were just marked “Sweet Potato Starts”. The “meat” is a typical yam-like light orange in color. Definitely I can trellis them.
*We have lots of hickory trees, and a few walnut trees, one quite large as the “mother”, so, spots without juglone and / or Hickory debris (especially) in the topsoil are hard to come by. Walking outside today with the stiff breeze that came up was “refreshing” and a good way to get hit by a falling walnut (in the husk) or hickory nut (same story). One of the walnuts that plunked down near me had a husk diameter of 3”!
U KY Growing your own garden Sweet Potatoes
A couple of things a would mention. Slips.... skinnier sweet potatoes produce more slips. You might want to buy specific varieties the first year from someplace like Baker Creek and save some for next hear. (Covington and Carogold maybe)
Spreading.... I had sections of rabbit fencing that I arched over the growing plants and I let them grow up through them rather than spreading all over the ground. I did this because they want to send down roots wherever the vine touches the soil. I wanted them to put their energy into growing tubers rather than spreading all over the place. A trellis would work for this. Here are a couple more videos from Deep South Homestead. Grow Your Own Sweet Potato SLIPS