Dioscorea bulbifera

Update (3-1-08): Despite the fact that the Houston Garden book lists them as an option for the garden, I checked the Texas Invasive Plants database, and discovered that this plant is on the list. Apparently Florida and Alabama aren't the only places where this plant can take over. It is also known to spread underground as well as by the builbils. This information was not in the USDA plants database at the time of this original post. Oops. :) And I still have those builbils someone gave me last August!

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Common names: Air Potato, Air Yam.
Duration: Deciduous perennial. May freeze to the ground in winter.
Nativity: South America, Africa, Australia
Light: full Sun
Ideal planting time: April
Growth rate: Fast.
Growth Habit: Vine--requires wire or string trellis for maximum growth.
Soil preference: Acidic-neutral, rich, well drained.
USDA zones: 9-11


According to the Houston Garden Book, these deciduous, fast-growing vines are easy to cultivate. Judging by the fact that I see them frequently in this region, I would venture to guess that the book is correct. They are also supposed to be pest resistant.

This plant seems to be quite at home in the tropical and Sub-tropical regions of the United States with thriving naturalized populations in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, and Florida, as well as in Hawaii and Puerto Rico, according to the USDA Plants Database. In some places, it thrives too well, and is therefore considered a noxious and invasive weed in Florida and Alabama. It should not be planted in those states.

I recently acquired two bulbils from a very friendly person with an abundance of these (or something in the same genus) in her own Houston area garden. She likes them, and finds that they take little effort to grow. She just tosses the bulbils wherever she wants her plants to grow, and with watering, they will sprout. No digging, no burying.

I will probably start mine in containers, and find a place for them in my garden later.

See the profile and pictures at Dave's Garden.

Note: Dioscorea bulbifera is not edible!