Ipomea batatas

It is a tuberous rooted tender perennial that has been cultivated for its orange-fleshed edible tubers for over 2000 years. It was reportedly brought back to Europe from the New World by Columbus. Today, the sweet potato is a popular root vegetable that is grown in vegetable gardens and as a commercial food crop throughout the world. Although species plants and varieties grown as food crops have somewhat attractive green foliage, it is the more recently introduced purple-, chartreuse- and variegated-leaved cultivars that have transformed this vegetable into a popular ornamental foliage plant.