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Dioscorea bulbifera
Dioscorea bulbifera
- Botanic Family
- Dioscoreaceae
- Author
- Linnaeus
- Cultivated
- C, tubers
- Hardiness Zone
- 7 9-11
Common Names
- Air Potato
- Aerial Yam
- Round Yam
- Cheeky Yam
- Hairy Yam
- Jitama
- Wukay
- Pas (Chepang)
- Phor (Danuwar)
- Potato Yam
- Kamlo (Gurung)
- Khashyo (Gurung)
- Kisi (Gurung)
- Buk (Lepchar)
- Khe (Limbu)
- Tarul (Majhi
- Tharu)
- Man Tarul (Nepali)
- Bhyakur (Nepali)
- Githa (Nepali)
- Kukur Tarul (Nepali)
- Hisaki (Newari)
- Sakkisak (Rai)
- Ghar Tyaur (Raute)
- Bengo Nari (Satar)
- Teme (Sherpa)
- Kanthamul (Sunwar)
- Nyitti
- Peivou (Vanuatu)
- Hoi (Tonga)
- Soi (Samoa)
- Hoi (Hawaiian)
- Bitter Yam
- Pi'oi (Hawaiian)
- Tabi (Huli-PNG)
- Tabayeme (Huli-PNG)
- I Houo Soft (Laos)
- Man Pau (Laos)
- Wild Yam
- Te'e (Andiri)
- Tewe (Nduye)
- Konjo (Teturi
- Mawambo)
- Bulbil Yam
- Huang du (Pinyin)
- Gunda
- Ah-lu-thi (Myanmar)
- Putsa-u (Myanmar)
- Myauk-kya (MYanmar)
- Man nok (Yam d'oiseau - Thailand)
- Man khamin (Yam turmeric- Thailand)
- Mak kho hton (Shan)
- Khua mak pao (Laos)
- Mak pao (Laos)
- Mak mouk (Laos)
- Li kam boua (Laos)
- Day su van (Vietnam)
- Ro po tinh (Moï)
- Po hia (Moï)
- Voeur damsprey (Cambodia)
- Moi clay (Vietnam)
- Niga-kashū (Japan)
- Papa Caribe (Costa Rica)
- Papa del Aire (Costa Rica)
- Papa Voladora (Costa Rica)
Geographical Habitats
- Angola
- Christmas Island
- Northern Territory
- Queensland
- Western Australia - Australia
- Bangladesh
- Benin
- Borneo
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Cambodia
- Cameroon
- Caroline Islands
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- China
- Congo
- Eritraea
- Ethiopia
- Gabon
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guineau Bissau
- Gulf of Guinea Islands
- Federated States of Micronesia
- India
- Ivory Coast
- Japan
- Java
- Lasser Sunda Islands
- Sulawesi
- Sumatra - Indonesia
- Kenya
- Korea
- Laos
- Liberia
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Malaysia
- Mali
- Mozambique
- Myanmar
- Caprivi Strip - Namibia
- Nepal
- Nigeria
- Pakistan
- New Guinea - Papua New Guinea
- Philippines
- Rwanda
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- Sri Lanka
- Sudan
- Tanzania
- Thailand
- Togo
- Uganda
- Vietnam
- Zaire
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Natural Habitats
- Moist places
- disturbed areas
- secondary growth
- semi-deciduous forest
- forest margins
- forest
- coastal
- montane areas
- coastal rain forest
- wasteland
Flowering Times
- Jun to Jul Late Summer
- early Autumn Jul-Oct (China) Jul-Oct (India)
Fruiting Times
- Nov to Dec Aug-Nov (China
- India)
Perennial deciduous non-woody clockwise twining glabrous tuberous vine to 6m with aerial tubers (axillary bulbils to 300g). Simple glabrous leaves to 400mm x 320mm, normally 200mm x 200mm. Axillary spikes or fascicles, male flowers solitary in panicles to 100mm long, purple or greenish-white flowers to 3mm long in pendant spikes or axillary fascicles to 200 mm long. Female spikes 2 or more together to 300mm long, female flowers to 5mm long. Fruit a straw-coloured, densely spotted glabrous purple capsule to 30mm x 15mm with 9 x 22mm wide wings at 90º.
Aerial tubers poisonous. Edible & inedible forms known. Aerial & root tubers may require treatment to be edible. Can become a weed, invasive pest.
Further References
- Menninger 1970
- Bailey 1976
- Beckett 1990
- Huxley 1992
- Nicholls 1995
- Rubatzky 1997
- Smith 1998
- Manandhar 2002
- net
- Mobot
- FOH
- net
- Llamas 2003
- FCP
- net
- NYBG
- FOC
- The Plant List 2
- Elmer
- VOPR
- USNH
- F Indochine
- JAA
- FOJ
- GBS
- FOPE
- Standley
- Kew
- IJPS