Skip to main content
FNAI logo, butterfly on a palm frond.

Dioscorea bulbifera

Common Name: air-potato

Family: Dioscoreaceae

Common Synonyms: none

USDA Hardiness Zone: 9a-11

Growth Habit: Vine

Origin: Tropical Asia

FISC Category: 1

FDACS Listed Noxious Weed: Yes

Introduction Date: 1905

IFAS Assessment:

  • North: PROHIBITED
  • Central: PROHIBITED
  • South: PROHIBITED
Dioscorea bulbifera
Brenda Herring
Dioscorea bulbifera
Pete Diamond

Description

Twining, herbaceous vine, with small or absent underground tubers. Stems to 20 m or more. Internodes, round, not winged. Bulbils roundish to 12 cm, surfaces smooth and formed in leaf axils. Leaves with long stalks, alternate, to 20 cm, broadly heart-shaped. Flowers rare, small fragrant, dioecious, in panicles or spikes to 11 cm long. Fruit a capsule.

Habitat

Hammocks, hardwood forests, disturbed areas

Comments

Similar to D. alata which has opposite leaves and native D. floridana, which never forms bulbils and has smaller leaves.

Map of species distribution

Control Methods

  • Manual: Mechanical: Cut vines that are high in trees, cut bulbils and remove from site. Dig up underground tubers if possible.
  • Chemical: Foliar (1-2% glyphosate [IFAS]), cut stems (10% triclopyr ester [IFAS] or undiluted triclopyr amine [UGA]).
  • Biological: NA

Control Notes

NA

References

Dave's Garden. 2014. PlantFiles: Air potato, Dioscorea bulbifera. http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/32235/. Accessed on June 20, 2014.

Langeland, K.A., H.M. Cherry, C.M. McCormick, K.C. Burks. 2008. Identification and Biology of Non-Native Plants in Florida's Natural Areas-Second Edition. IFAS Publication SP 257. University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.

Langeland, K.A., J.A. Ferrell, B. Sellers, G.E. MacDonald, and R.K. Stocker. 2011. Integrated management of non-native plants in natural areas of Florida. EDIS publication SP 242. University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.

Wunderlin, R. P., and B. F. Hansen. 2008. Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants (http://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/).[S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), Florida Center for Community Design and Research.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

Print Friendly Version