Dioscorea bulbifera

Potato yam

DioscoreaceaeLeavesRootsScore: 52/100Potential hazards — see below

foodpoison

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(c) Dinesh Valke, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

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(c) Keyla Pruett, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

What to Eat

Edible parts: Tuber, Root, Bulbils, Vegetable

The aerial tubers are cooked — boiled, baked, fried, or prepared in other ways — and have an agreeable taste. They must be thoroughly cooked to destroy toxic alkaloids. Wild forms are always toxic raw, though selected cultivars have been developed with much lower levels or none at all. Aerial tubers are produced over a long period and can be harvested accordingly. The roots, usually around 0.5kg though sometimes reaching 1.5kg, are also eaten cooked, though they are not always produced. The inflorescences are also apparently eaten.

Known Hazards

Where to Find It

A tropical plant. It will grow from the coast up to about 1700 m altitude in equatorial zones. It is common near the edge of grassland and forest at mid altitudes. It grows in savannah woodland. Both wild and cultivated forms occur. It is common in the Philippines, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea near secondary forest at low and medium altitudes. It is cultivated in Africa and the West Indies. In Nepal it grows to 2100 m altitude. It suits hardiness zones 9-12. In Yunnan.

Africa, American Samoa, Andamans, Angola, Asia, Australia, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bougainville, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Central America, China, Christmas Island, Chuuk, Colombia, Comoros, Congo DR, Congo R, Cook Is., Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Chuuk, Cuba, Dominican Republic, East Africa, East Timor, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Fiji, French Polynesia, FSM, Gambia, Ghana, Guam, Guiana, Guianas, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Laos, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Marquesas, Mauritius, Micronesia, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, New Caledonia, Niger, Nigeria, Niue, North America, Northeastern India, Pacific, Pakistan, Palau, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Reunion, Rotuma, Sahel, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, SE Asia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sikkim, Solomon Islands, Southern Africa, South America, Sri Lanka, St Lucia, Suriname, Tahiti, Taiwan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Tanzania, Uganda, USA, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Wallis & Futuna, West Africa, West Indies, Yap, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

Countries: United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Antigua & Barbuda, Armenia, Angola, Argentina, American Samoa, Australia, Azerbaijan, Barbados, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Bahrain, Burundi, Benin, Brunei, Bolivia, Brazil, Bahamas, Bhutan, Botswana, Belize, Canada, Congo (DRC), Central African Republic, Congo (Republic), Cote d'Ivoire, Chile, Cameroon, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cape Verde, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Algeria, Ecuador, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Micronesia, Gabon, Grenada, Georgia, French Guiana, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, Haiti, Indonesia, Israel, India, Iraq, Iran, Jamaica, Jordan, Japan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, Kiribati, Comoros, St Kitts & Nevis, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Laos, Lebanon, St Lucia, Sri Lanka, Liberia, Lesotho, Libya, Morocco, Madagascar, Marshall Islands, Mali, Myanmar, Mongolia, Mauritania, Mauritius, Maldives, Malawi, Mexico, Malaysia, Mozambique, Namibia, New Caledonia, Niger, Nigeria, Nicaragua, Nepal, Nauru, Niue, New Zealand, Oman, Panama, Peru, French Polynesia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Pakistan, Puerto Rico, Palau, Paraguay, Qatar, Reunion, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands, Seychelles, Sudan, Singapore, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, Suriname, South Sudan, Sao Tome & Principe, El Salvador, Syria, Eswatini, Chad, Togo, Thailand, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Tunisia, Tonga, Turkey, Trinidad & Tobago, Tuvalu, Taiwan, Tanzania, Uganda, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, St Vincent, Venezuela, Vietnam, Vanuatu, Samoa, Yemen, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How to Identify

A yam with a long smooth stemmed vine, round in cross section. It winds to the left. It does not have spines. The vine can climb up into trees and grow to long lengths. The leaves are large and round. They are pointed at the tip and round at the base. About 7 veins arise from the tip of the leaf stalk. Leaves can be 14-30 cm across and slightly longer than wide. This yam produces bulbils (potatoes) in the angles of the leaves along the vine. These are often flattened and can be grey brown or purple. Under the ground it has a smaller tuber normally covered with roots. The flowers are large. The male flowers are in spikes up to 20 cm long. The female spikes are usually in pairs. The fruit are winged and about 2.5 cm long by 1.5 cm across. The seeds have wings. The bulbils normally have few fibres through the tissue compared to some yams tubers. The flesh of many varieties is yellow.

Nutrition Score: 52/100

Part	Moisture	kJ	kcal	Protein	Vit A	Vit C	Iron	Zinc
Tuber	72.5	455	109	2.3	—	32	1.1	0.7
Tuber	70.8	357	85	2.7	—	78	3.1	0.4

How to Grow

Either the bulbils off the vine, or the underground tubers are planted. Because the vines are long, training them up trees is convenient. The bulbils have to be stored for a period of time before they will sprout. The plant is annual and leaves die off for 1-4 months each year before re-sprouting from the tuber. Bulbils only grow shoots from one end unless the bulbil is cut into pieces. If the larger bulbils are cut, the cut surfaces should be dried and healed in a shady place for 2-3 days before planting. Bulbils are planted 8-12 cm below the surface and spacing can be 100 cm by 100 cm or variations of this. Normally nitrogen and potassium fertilisers give greater responses than phosphorus. Friable well drained soils are most suitable. Often very little cultivation or mounding is done. A high level of organic matter improves yield. Staking is normally required but often trees or living stakes are used. Branched stakes 2 m high are suitable. They need to be strongly erected as vine and tuber growth can be extensive and heavy.

Propagation: Seed is rarely produced and not normally used for propagation. Tuber cuttings are the standard method: small tubers are cut into 2–4 sections and larger ones into 6–8 sections, each with 2–3 dormant buds. Cut tubers are often left in the sun for several hours to encourage wound healing and reduce the risk of fungal infection. Aerial tubers can also be used and typically produce vigorous plants; these are often divided into 2 or more equal-sized pieces. Plants may need two growing seasons to produce full-size aerial bulbs.

Medicinal Uses

Root juice is taken internally to expel threadworm and dripped into wounds to remove worms and germs. Both the tuber and aerial bulbil of wild races have medicinal applications, particularly external ones. They are applied as a poultice for wounds, sores, boils, and inflammations; used in dressings for dermal parasitic and fungal infections; or crushed, mixed with palm oil, and massaged onto areas affected by rheumatism, breast complaints, and jigger infestations. In India, the tuber is considered diuretic and is used as a remedy for diarrhoea and haemorrhoids. The fruits are used to treat boils and fever. Sap from the vine stems is applied to purulent ophthalmia and snake-bite. The leaves are used against pink-eye, often by steam-distillation. Dioscorine has been detected in the tuber, though some Nigerian material has been reported free of it. Alkaloids occur in the leaves, stems, and especially the fruits. Diosgenin has been detected at 0–45% concentration, and saponin and several other pharmacologically active substances are also present.

Other Uses

The plant has parasiticide applications. It is grown in food forest systems.

Wikipedia

Source ↗

Dioscorea bulbifera (commonly known as the air potato, air yam, bitter yam, cheeky yam, potato yam, aerial yam, and parsnip yam) is a species of true yam in the yam family, Dioscoreaceae. It is native to Africa, Asia and northern Australia. It is widely cultivated and has become naturalized in many regions.

Production

Bulbils or aerial yams are produced as soon as leaves begin to unfold and continue until the plant reaches maturity. These aerial tubers often fall from the plant. Harvesting can start 3 months after planting but immature tubers have less starch. Underground tubers are normally not harvested until the leaves die back. Wounds and damage to the tuber surface normally heals naturally given dry aerated conditions. Some varieties have aerial tubers which are seasonally dormant and only grow after an extended period of storage. Others germinate relatively quickly.

Other Information

It is a commercially cultivated vegetable. This yam is widely distributed in lowland areas of Papua New Guinea and is a supplementary starchy staple food.

Notes

There are about 650 species of Dioscorea. It can be invasive.

Names & Synonyms

Abubu, Acom, Aerial Yam, Agbanio, Ah-lu-thi, Air-potato, Akam, Ankindjek, Apuereka, Assidhakattala, Bachi, Ban tarul, Banalu, Bantarul, Ban temee, Barodaa, Basel phauk, Batata de rama, Bayag-toro, Bayal, Bejuco de natilla, Belloi, Bon-alu, Bontarul, Bubaia, Buefu, Cambare marron, Cara de are, Catoco, Chaxo poa, Chedu dumpa, Chedupaddu-dumpa, Cheeky yam, Chitangula, Chupri alu, Coolngarrie, Cu mei, Dai, Danda yam, Dandam, Dandandim-o, Dangkanda, Dau fasia, Dehs prei, Denebra, Dimoa, Drun, Dukkar-kand, Endome, Engin, Favi, Fikengere, Fui, Gaicha alu, Gaithi, Ganmanggu, Gasalu, Gathalu, Geetha, Genebra, Gethi, Gethia kanda, Ghartarul, Gidtha, Githi, Githa, Githo, Goch alu, Gosh alu, Gulgariny, Gunda, Haaran bo, Heggenasum, Helak, Ho, Hofikary, Hoi, Huang du, Huwi blichik, Indrenni, Igname bois, Igname-sau-vage, Inga piru, Iroga, Jebubug basu, Kadukand, Kadukaranda, Kadvokand, Kaile, Kaile dranu, Kaile manu, Kalangua, Ka la si, Kalialia, Karanda, Karukarinda, Karuvalli, Kasiena, Kattala, Kattu-kachil, Khoinga, Ki, Kodi, Kodikilangu, Koile mila, Konjo, Kuchung, Kurlama, Lac, Lahara, Lekut, Lindya, Litu, Lu gong lai biu, Mabuaia, Magnaheugo, Malakaka yapendalamu, Man nok, Manamund, Manyanya, Mas aloo, Mas alu, Matalu, Matara, Mataru, Methe aloo, Mithene, Mitho githa, Mpenga, Muwana, Name del aire, Name volador, Niambe-de-matom, Nika, Numwe, Ofaka, Ofa lei, Ogoko, Oi, Okoo, Otaheite yam, Pain, Palai, Pannukilangu, Papa aerea, Papa del aire, Papa voladora, Peng-khe, Pesta-alo, Pisimonaju, Piska sanga, Pitaalu, Puralu, Puri, Putsa-u, Ranmataru, Ratalu, Ratulu, Rok, Ruipan, Rukhel, Sang, Shunku papa, Sise, Soi, Soko, Suaralu, Syak, Te'e, Tewe, Tha borok, Thaphu miyung-wablai, Tikor alu, Timbom, Tito githa, To, Ubi atatus, Ubi-ubihan, Udala, Ufi lei, Uhi, Undome, Uwi gantung, Wila, Yi bao, Yoi

Dioscorea anthropophagorum A. Chev.Dioscorea bubifera L. var. sativa (Thunb.) PrainDioscorea bulbifera var. anthropophagorum (A. Chev.) Summerh.Dioscorea latifolia Benth.Dioscorea sativa var. rotundaDioscorea sativa Thunb.Helmia bulbifera (Linnaeus) Kunth.

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