Dioscorea wallichii
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(c) Shiwalee Samant, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Shiwalee Samant
(c) Radha Veach, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Tubers, Root
The tubers can be eaten after boiling and washing.
Where to Find It
A tropical plant. It grows in mixed deciduous and evergreen forests. In southern China it grows on mountain slopes between 900-1,300 m above sea level. In Yunnan.
Asia, Bangladesh, China, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Northeastern India, SE Asia, Thailand,
How to Identify
A yam. The stem has prickles near the base. The stems twine in a right handed direction. The stems can be 20 m long. The tuber is up to 1 m long and 6 cm wide and deeply buried in the soil. The flesh is white. The leaves are a rounded heart shape. Plants are separately male and female.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Dioscorea wallichii is a type of climbing tuberous geophyte of the family Dioscoreaceae. It is native to Bangladesh, China, India, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand. It has one edible cylindrical tuber that is about 1 meter long and 3-6 centimeters wide. The tuber is white when young, becoming yellow and stringy once aged.
Other Information
It is a significant food plant in S. Thailand.
Notes
There are about 650 species of Dioscorea.
Names & Synonyms
Benne, Chaydu, Cherenga alu, Eghen ngeyuk, Han-alu, Kadat, Kruo, Pitalu, Purakilangu, Rang sanga, Rui nihang, Taw-thinbaw, Tunga kand, Yarex
References (15)
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- Wild edible plants of Himachal Pradesh
