Ask-a-Dave's-Gardener: Four O'clock tubers not growing!, 2 by Gitagal

Gitagal wrote:
Takes a while for things to "come up" sometimes.....I think they need to be WS.
They ARE biennial.
Sow your seeds outside in late fall and let mother Nature take care of them.
Once you have 4's--the amount of seeds they drop is crazy!
You will bw pulling seedlings up forever. They look just like Morning glories.
Keep track of WHERE you had your 4's.!

2--I have dug up 4's roots after 2 years of growing, and they were a massive clump.
I put them in a container with a bit of soil around them, and waited.
Before too long--but long enough--I saw little green nubs coming out of the clump.

I understand that in warmer zones you can leave them in the ground and they will
come back every year to the point of becoming monstrous.

I usually just plant them from seed.

1--These are dug up tubers after just ONE year's growth --(2008)

2 & 3--These are 2 year old tubers dug up and stored in my basement,
Brought them out in April. I put some soil in a shallow tray around the tuber
and just waited. It took a long while--but, eventually, there were new green
sprouts showing.

Crazy how huge the roots can get in just 2 years!!!!!

All I can say is--BE PATIENT! Gita