Edible Air Potato (Dioscorea bulbifera) - Buy, Sell & Trade

Halfway into bulbil season, and inspired by David's thread on TPS, I've decided to start a thread for buying, selling, trading and reviewing suppliers of Edible Air Potatoes. To paraphrase David, edible bulbiferas are hard to find.

I'm trying to acquire as many as I can, and I trade mine when there's surplus. They might be prohibited in some US states, but they're not Federally prohibited, and they're not prohibited in my neck of the woods (Puerto Rico).

Asian varieties (always rounded to varying degrees, but never angular) are generally considered superior in flavor and production to African strains (which are usually said have a touch of bitterness; they're always angular to varying degrees), but all are worth growing as far as I'm concerned.

Note: This thread is primarily focused on edible varieties of Dioscorea bulbifera. With that said, other edible bulbil-bearers, be they Dioscorea, Anredera or what have you, are also welcome. Let's get this show on the road!

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Some of these vendors periodically go out and back in stock, so bookmark their pages if you're interested, and keep track during bulbil season (Fall & Winter, Northern Hemisphere).

"Hawaiian Tropical Plant Nursery, LLC" is offering an edible Dioscorea their page ambiguously refers to as either D. bulbifera or D. esculenta. I ordered it early in the year, after some trouble: I had to hash out the order by email because I didn't know when the seller would have it available, and when it was finally marked as available on the page, the cart button wouldn't work for me... So the order was finished by email. It arrived, and it grew and it produced... No esculenta here, a true bulbifera through and through! The anatomy confirms it. A strain of African descent, it may or may not be the same clone that GrowerJim refers to as "Hawaii" (I've tentatively named it "Hawaii 2"). My vines are going into dormancy, and I've not had the pleasure of tasting it... Only one bulbil this season (because it prematurely died back and resprouted after I traveled), and I sent it to a friend. I hope to taste it next year. Link here:

https://www.store.hawaiiantropicalplants.com/Dioscorea-sp-Air-Potato-55-inch-square-pot-1618.htm

Stephward Estate Nursery in South Africa has another African strain of edible bulbifera, but it's unlisted in their website. I found out from a helpful member of another forum, who told me to message them through Whatsapp to make the order. And I did! I've now had it for two years, growing it under the name "Sena" (as a near-acronymic reference to the nursery, because they didn't give me a varietal name — names are important, it helps to keep track of the varieties), but it has been frustratingly unproductive! One bulbil last year (didn't taste it, planted it and lost it), and it has yet to produce any this year, but the vines had a late start, and they're still in active growth, so there's hope yet. I'd like to think that my trouble with this cultivar has been due to the change in hemisphere... Maybe another year of acclimation will get it to churn out bulbils. You can find their mobile phone number to message them through Whatsapp on the bottom of their web page:

https://www.stephward.co.za

Etsy seller Babubotanicals sells both seeds and bulbils of a yellow-fleshed Indian strain they insist is edible. I'm getting some of this strain from a friend later this year (said friend has eaten them, and despite the statement in the original listing, they found them pleasant, not bitter).  Once I've found out its particular locality in India, I'll be able to give it a name. Also note that anything from the seeds should be a different variety, so unless it's near identical to the mother vine (a female vine), the name of the original clone shouldn't apply (though referring to it as a seedling of "X name" should be fine, as should derivative names). Link to their listing:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/644244780/dioscorea-bulbifera-with-both-bulbs-and?ga_search_query=Bulbifera&ref=shop_items_search_1

* Edit: I messaged the Etsy seller, who stated that their bulbifera strain comes from Odisha. Therefore, "Odisha Yellow" seems a suitable identifier for this variety, to distinguish it from the other yellow-fleshed Asian accessions, of which there are several broadly similar types. *

* Edit 2: Corrected information:

Etsy seller Babubotanicals sells two different varieties (and knows of a third one – which they don't sell –, bitter, requires boiling a few times to render it non-bitter). They sell both seeds and bulbils, but they sell them individually, so if you want both, you'll have to order both (assuming they're available at the same time, which they may not be). Each variety has its own listing, and they're not referred to as being the same.

The first variety, sold as bulbils, is the one I call Odisha Yellow (received it from a friend), and lacks bitterness; they were never listed as bitter. They're not currently available... There's an "Inform when restocked" feature, but I've been told it doesn't work. The official listing is this one: https://www.etsy.com/listing/644196954/edible-dioscorea-bulbifera-non-bitter

The second variety – sold as seeds (¿and maybe bulbils?) – has tiny bulbils, not considered edible by the seller due to its bitter flavor. It's reasonably consistent by seed, so it may qualify as a landrace variety, and is native to central India. Link here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/644244780/dioscorea-bulbifera-with-both-bulbs-and *

On messaging them, Thai eBay vendors "thailandplant" and "GoodMice" have both confirmed their varieties as being edible (meanwhile, "smile-nature" is selling a toxic one as an ornamental only, so I won't be posting his listing). I recently received the one from "thailandplant" (christened "Nonthaburi Yellow", for locality & flesh color), and it's a beautiful dark bulbil, quite different from my other varieties (his photos don't do it justice, it looks a bit different). I can't wait to get a crop next year! It hasn't arrived yet, but I'm hoping the clone from "GoodMice" is a separate variety (it was described as having "knots" in the skin, which "Nonthaburi Yellow" doesn't have). For its locality & flesh, I'll name it "Mae-Sai Yellow", if it's different from the Nonthaburi clone. Links to their varieties here:

"thailandplant" (Nonthaburi Yellow): https://www.ebay.com/itm/Bulb-DIOSCOREA-BULBIFERA-Air-Potato-Yam-Herb-Plant-Phytosanitary-Certificate/401523014621

"GoodMice" (Mae-Sai Yellow): https://www.ebay.com/itm/3-Dioscorea-Bulbifera-Bulbs-Thai-Herb/182952108093

I bought an African strain from eBay vendor "buyexoticsseeds" from Mexico (thus, I've named it "Mexico"). When asked if their strain was the same grown in "Las Cañadas, Bosque de Niebla", they confirmed that it was. Photos from Las Cañadas' FaceBook show a much more rounded strain than usual, but in a disk-like fashion, not spherical; soft angles. I haven't planted my bulbils yet, but I will in the coming days. Link here:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3-BULBOS-DIOSCOREA-BULBIFERA-PAPA-VOLADORA-DE-AIRE-NAME-GUISOS-HUERTO-VITAMINAS/123864323804

I bought another African strain from British-based Polish eBay vendor "lupinaster", and it's set to arrive next year. They refer to it as a 'Sativa' type, but I think they're just trying to say it's edible. Genuine 'Sativa' is a strictly Asian subspecies. The photos depict a clamshell-like bulbil that may be similar to "Hawaii", so I'll keep an eye out for any similarities between it, "Hawaii 2", and Jim's "Hawaii" (which I'll be receiving in the mail soon from a friend). Until I've confirmed its origins, I'm tentatively calling it "Pińczów". Link here:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vegetable-Air-Yam-Dioscorea-bulbifera-f-sativa-edible-1-large-tuber/223734238301

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Those are the official online vendors I've found thus far. Meanwhile, I have my own 2 accessions sent to me by a friend in India, and I've named them with his initials: "CV-1" is a genuine "Sativa", and it matures into large, pale, smooth, thin-skinned bulbils with green-tinged flesh. "CV-2" seems to be a "Suavior" type, very bumpy, and said to be tastier than "CV-1" (I've not had the pleasure of tasting it, it died back with only one small bulbil in the same incident that set back my "Hawaii 2" vine — the small bulbil is sprouting now). So far, I've only tasted CV-1, and here's what I have to say: best picked very mature or very immature – my grandmother ate a large immature one and found it hard, while I've found fully mature ones to be as tender as any yam, and I popped a small one into my soup and found it tender as well. Best eaten fresh – I ate one the same day I plucked it, and it was great, more like potato than yam in flavor, while those that sat a week on the table already felt a bit off, while a month on the table had them feeling distasteful to me (enough to put me off a bit; bitter). The biggest bulbil I've had so far was a 1 pound beast. I'm not sure if cross-forum linking is against forum rules (be gentle with me), but you can find photos and an account of my experiences with this species in the following link:

http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?PHPSESSID=1e2776de619661331ad8a36dabcf00f3&topic=26151.0

I'm also gonna receive a few other edible varieties from some acquaintances, so check this space occasionally for further developments. And if you find any other sources for edible bulbiferas, please don't hesitate to add them!

I forgot to add in my original post, but RarePalmSeeds advertises an alleged Dioscorea bulbifera. I bought it, and the bulbils sprouted soon after arrival. They were not bulbifera bulbils, the anatomy of the resulting vines was pure D. alata. Since it's a misidentified species, I won't be posting the link unless someone's interested in a bulbil-bearing alata.

Buyer beware on eBay, a lot of vendors are selling misidentified alatas, polystachyas and pentaphyllas as bulbiferas (as if toxic bulbiferas weren't enough). One of the top results claims to sell 25+ bulbs per order, with the quote: "Thai sellers sell these for 15$ for 3 seeds plus ship!"... The pictures very clearly depict polystachya (confirmed when they describe the bulbils as looking like mini Idaho Potatoes).

Do your homework on yam anatomy, and you'll be able to avoid buying misidentified air potatoes (if they post honest product photos), or at least you'll recognize when you've bought one when the vine sprouts.

A summary of Dioscorea yam anatomy, taken from another forum's post of mine:

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When talking about leaves, I mean the leaves on the upper portion of mature vines. Leaves on the lowest portion, as well as on young vines, can sometimes develop in a different configuration (usually alternate on a vine that otherwise has paired leaves).

Vines that twist to the left (lower right to upper left: the "S" twist):
*D. bulbifera*
*D. pentaphylla*
D. esculenta
D. trifida
D. dumetorum

Vines that twist to the right (lower left to upper right: the "Z" twist):
*D. alata*
*D. polystachya*
D. rotundata & cayennensis
D. nummularia
D. transversa
D. japonica
D. hamiltonii

Paired Leaves:
*D. alata*
*D. polystachya*
D. rotundata & cayennensis
D. nummularia
D. japonica
D. hamiltonii

Alternate Leaves:
*D. bulbifera*
*D. pentaphylla*
D. esculenta
D. trifida
D. transversa
D. dumetorum

Pentaphylla leaves are divided into 5 leaflets, dumetorum into 3, the rest are singular. Trifida leaves are somewhat palmate, and other than the rounded leaflets of pentaphylla and dumetorum, the rest are heart-shaped (with varying ratios of length-breadth and varying degrees of rounded to angular corners). Bulbifera leaves tend to be broad, alata leaves a bit more narrow and often angular, and polystachya leaves narrow & heart lance-shaped.

Trifida, alata and hamiltonii stems have ridges/wings (which can be substituted by corresponding ridges of spines in some varieties of alata). Rotundata, cayennensis, esculenta, pentaphylla and dumetorum stems tend to be spined or prickly to varying degrees; the rest are smooth (though some species, like nummularia, can have prickles at the base). Bulbifera and nummularia have thick round stems in mature vines (bulbifera's being fluted), polystachya has a square stem (thin, even at full maturity). Dumetorum is highly pubescent/fuzzy.

Bulbifera bulbils range from round to heart-shaped (like the organ) in Asian types, irregular & angular in African types, and can grow to a large size, though small ones are also produced. Polystachya and japonica bulbils can be round or oval, and are always very small. Alata bulbils are ovoid to long & irregular (but not angular), and are small to medium sized. Pentaphylla bulbils are small to medium sized and ovoid to horseshoe shaped, and dumetorum bulbils (probably toxic) are spiny. I'm not sure how transversa bulbils are, but only some varieties produce them. The rest don't usually produce bulbils. Bulbifera is a reliable producer of bulbils, whereas not all varieties of alata produce bulbils, and those that do aren't usually as productive as bulbifera.

Those are the main distinctions, but there's always variation among the species listed, never mind those that I didn't get to list, which should have further differences.

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For more information on Dioscoreas, I'll post the links to "Tropical Yams And Their Potential", volumes 1-6:

1. Dioscorea esculenta - https://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=CAT87208469&content=PDF

2. Dioscorea bulbifera - https://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=CAT87208471&content=PDF

3. Dioscorea alata - https://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=CAT87208472&content=PDF

4. Dioscorea rotundata & cayennensis - https://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=CAT87209454&content=PDF

5. Dioscorea trifida - https://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=CAT87208470&content=PDF

6. Minor Cultivated Dioscoreas - https://naldc-legacy.nal.usda.gov/naldc/download.xhtml?id=CAT87209435&content=PDF

any further info on different varieties? are any more hardy/productive/tasty than others?

C. West wrote:any further info on different varieties? are any more hardy/productive/tasty than others?

I suspect the Asian types may be hardier than the African types, but that's mostly speculation on my part. According to Toensmeier's book on Perennial Vegetables, they should be outdoor hardy as perennials to zone 7.

I've only tasted CV-1 (a "Sativa") so far, so I can only give second-hand accounts on the flavor of other types. Thin-skinned types can be eaten unpeeled, but this may increase the bitterness in the bite with some varieties. African types are said to have a degree of bitterness, subtle enough to get used to quickly, but perhaps not everyone's cup of tea; they're also said to be firmer in texture. The best of the lot in terms of production and flavor are said to come from Asian stock, but there is variation, and even amongst edible stock, there are inferior Asian bulbiferas. In the document on bulbiferas, a clone of subspecies "Sativa" was found to be the highest yielding.

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I purchased another one from eBay vendor kero-ppi, who, on being asked, claimed "Can be made as food, but is not popular to eat this type. Most will be used to make medicine more". Good enough for me. If it's yellow, as I suspect, I'll call it "Chiang-Saen Yellow". If it's the same as "Mae-Sai Yellow", I may have to rename both as "Chiang-Rai Yellow" as this is the greater region to which both localities belong. I'm hoping it's different though, and even if similar, I suspect they're probably different clones. Link here:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3-Bulb-Dioscorea-Bulbifera-Bulbilbearing-yam-Thai-Herbs/322929051908

I also found a Brazilian website that sells one or several bulbifera strains, but they're not currently in stock, and I have my doubts on whether they ship overseas. I may try at a later date, but for now, I'll leave that one on the backburner. Link:

http://www.thjardins.com.br/php/shopping_produtos_detalhe.php?produto=349

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I have a bunch of bulbils from my CV-1 vine, if anyone's interested. I've been told they're dead ringers for some of the wild types found in Florida, but rest assured they are edible... I've eaten them in quantity with my family, at various stages of pre-and-post-harvest maturity, with and without the skin, and we've never been poisoned. I received the original bulbils straight from India, from a man who grows them as food, so I had no problem trying them out the first time.

They're a bit on the smaller size this year, probably because I was neglectful with the water and didn't even fertilize. Last year's bulbils reached a 1 lb maximum, with many being bigger than the average apple.

PM me for details. If you have something interesting to trade, let me know.

all those bulbs in the pic are from the cv-1 variety? how do they taste? im in zone 5 so the only ones that i could do are the chinese and japanese species, but in the future i want to try some in an unheated greenhouse with planter boxes giving two levels of protection. im a year or more away from experimenting, but am interested in how your varieties turn out, keep updating this thread if you can with comparisons and i would def buy som from you in the future (if i can get them in canada).

C. West wrote:all those bulbs in the pic are from the cv-1 variety? how do they taste? im in zone 5 so the only ones that i could do are the chinese and japanese species, but in the future i want to try some in an unheated greenhouse with planter boxes giving two levels of protection. im a year or more away from experimenting, but am interested in how your varieties turn out, keep updating this thread if you can with comparisons and i would def buy som from you in the future (if i can get them in canada).

Yep, all from the CV-1 vines. They're good when fresh, and a bit more like potato than yam in flavor. Leave 'em out for too long post-harvest, and you'll start to detect bitter tones when cooked. For those who haven't checked my other forum's post, I'll post a few pics from my past harvests here.

I can try sending to Canada when you're ready. I'm not sure if they'd be allowed in or if Customs would be an issue, but if you're willing to try, I'm willing.

That's impressive, for sure. I'm growing whatever Dioscorea I can, and only the chinese one survives and gives small bulbils (and long roots).
The supposedly bulbifera I tried never gave me any aerial bulbil, and died when in storage.
Yours is a cultivar I would love to try if I was not on the wrong side of the pond.

André Troylilas wrote:That's impressive, for sure. I'm growing whatever Dioscorea I can, and only the chinese one survives and gives small bulbils (and long roots).
The supposedly bulbifera I tried never gave me any aerial bulbil, and died when in storage.
Yours is a cultivar I would love to try if I was not on the wrong side of the pond.

What's your location? I've sent CV-1 to Italy, and to Portugal (where I've also sent other tubers, including "Hawaii 2"/"Steve's Hawaii"). Haven't had any fuss during the process.

Also... ¿Source for your previous bulbifera? Is it still available anywhere? What kind was it?

I live in the North of France. The ones that never fail me are Dioscorea batatas and opposita.
The batatas was obtained from a french producer and from edulis, and the opposita from various sources, mostly from China.
The supposedly bulbifera I bought was from Uncle Chan garden, in Thaïland.
It's not available for the time being, but it will come back I guess, depends of the time of the year. I also bought from him and lost Dioscorea pseudo-tomentosa, Dioscorea filiformis
For the time being, he has Dioscorea esculenta. I grew this one, it withstood -7°C, but died last summer of drought.
I have Dioscorea alata and Dioscorea hamiltonii seeds.
I had bought Ichoïmo, but I lost track of them, they must be in the opposita/batatas mix I have.

I don't have a safe place to grow them right now, but I'd really like some in the future when my greenhouse is set up. There are actually several plant-breeding projects I've been hoping to do with air potatoes.

I'm in Wisconsin. I have no idea what would be involved in shipping them here, but I guess I have time to find out.

André Troylilas wrote:I live in the North of France. The ones that never fail me are Dioscorea batatas and opposita.
The batatas was obtained from a french producer and from edulis, and the opposita from various sources, mostly from China.
The supposedly bulbifera I bought was from Uncle Chan garden, in Thaïland.
It's not available for the time being, but it will come back I guess, depends of the time of the year. I also bought from him and lost Dioscorea pseudo-tomentosa, Dioscorea filiformis
For the time being, he has Dioscorea esculenta. I grew this one, it withstood -7°C, but died last summer of drought.
I have Dioscorea alata and Dioscorea hamiltonii seeds.
I had bought Ichoïmo, but I lost track of them, they must be in the opposita/batatas mix I have.

I'm not sure if Customs would be an issue, but I think I can ship to France. The shipping to there might be a touch expensive though. The cheapest I've sent to Portugal was about US$15 in shipping.

D. batatas & D. opposita are actually the same species, currently classified as D. polystachya; you probably have different varieties on hand. D. japonica is pretty similar, but a distinct species. I think Nagaimo's root is supposed to be a bit more compact than standard polystachyas. I got mine from Fair Dinkum Seeds, and it definitely seems more club-shaped than some of the polystachya roots I've seen online.

Was Uncle Chan's bulbifera bumpy, pockmarked or smooth? Nonthaburi Yellow is pockmarked (not very visible in the eBay pictures, I'll post one at the end). Mae-sai Yellow is said to be bumpy by the vendor, it hasn't arrived for me yet.

I bought D. pseudo-tomentosa from him as well, and killed it with poor planting (heavy soil, exceedingly moist). I've been waiting for him to repost it ever since.

If that picture of "D. esculenta" is true to the product he's selling, then that's not an esculenta, it's a D. alata. True esculenta doesn't have those fringes or "wings" on its stem. I'm growing esculenta right now, and it's just like the description in TYATP, with potato-like clusters of tubers.

Ellendra Nauriel wrote:I don't have a safe place to grow them right now, but I'd really like some in the future when my greenhouse is set up. There are actually several plant-breeding projects I've been hoping to do with air potatoes.

I'm in Wisconsin. I have no idea what would be involved in shipping them here, but I guess I have time to find out.

Shipping to Wisconsin should be pretty simple. I've shipped stuff to Florida, Arizona & Texas, not much different from local shipping.

Breeding should be an interesting matter. There are differing ploidy levels in the different bulbifera populations, never mind the dioecy. But if bulbifera can be crossed with rotundata (admittedly with embryo rescue), then crossing the different bulbiferas should be much simpler. Personally, I think the idea of both Traditional and Somatic Hybrids with D. polystachya holds promise.

Caesar Smith wrote:I'm not sure if Customs would be an issue, but I think I can ship to France. The shipping to there might be a touch expensive though. The cheapest I've sent to Portugal was about US$15 in shipping.

I have not yet understood what works and what does not work with customs. I'd like to try my luck with your Dioscorea if you don't mind.

Caesar Smith wrote:Was Uncle Chan's bulbifera bumpy, pockmarked or smooth? Nonthaburi Yellow is pockmarked (not very visible in the eBay pictures, I'll post one at the end). Mae-sai Yellow is said to be bumpy by the vendor, it hasn't arrived for me yet.

It was pockmarked, but not as much as yours.


Thanks.

André Troylilas wrote:
I have not yet understood what works and what does not work with customs. I'd like to try my luck with your Dioscorea if you don't mind.

All right then. I'll set aside a few bulbils. PM me whenever you're ready.

I'm interested in a few bulbils.

Aj Hans wrote:I'm interested in a few bulbils.

Where are you located? I'll set some aside for you. PM me when you're ready.

Caesar, I am very interested in growing Dioscorea bulbifera. Started growing D. polystachia last year from some areal bulbs a friend gave me. After reading eric toensmeir's book I am extremely excited about the size of the arial bulbs of D. bulbifera! I encountered the same problem you did trying to find a reputable supplier online for a non toxic cultivated variety. I would be extremely grateful if you would be willing to share some of your edible varieties and happy to pay for your trouble.

PM answered!

Also, I should note that bulbil-bearing yams (bulbifera included) don't usually reach peak production until at least their second year. The image captioned "My first bulbil" was the biggest one I had the first year. The rest were all smaller bulbils. There's always small bulbils, but as vines mature through the years, they should consistently bear bigger ones as well.

The image of last year's harvest (which included the big boy) was from vines in their second year, fertilized and watered. My contact in India harvested a 2 pound monster from his CV-1.

So in conclusion, keep 'em fed, keep 'em watered, and you'll consistently get bigger bulbils from the second year onward.

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Mae-sai Yellow just arrived, very different from Nonthaburi Yellow. Seems like subspecies "Suavior". Looks a lot like CV-2, though paler, with bigger lenticels (and CV-2 had weird lenticels where they were raised and bumpy, but sunken in the middle, different from the pockmarked strains).

Very cool to see all the different variations and expressions! I am interested to hear which varieties store the best. (I read what you said about stored CV-1 being less palatable). Thanks for sharing the results and progress of all your hard research and trials!

The trials are just getting started! I'd like to compare size, yields, pest resistance, flavor, breeding compatibility... The breeding possibilities are endless! And I'll try to cross them to polystachya if I get the chance. The only thing missing is a decent plot of land. Not much space to grow giant vines in a suburban backyard. I'll be looking at land soon, to see if I can get a proper farm started.

And regarding pests, it seems several insects like to chew on the leaves. The pests always come out at night (the vines are full of them at midnight). Cockroaches and crickets chew on the leaves, and snails eat the bulbils. I like to hunt snails at night, when they're out and about. The beer traps don't work well for me.

Caesar Smith wrote:The breeding possibilities are endless! And I'll try to cross them to polystachya if I get the chance.

Sounds like a lot of fun and worthwhile! I wish you luck finding the land you are looking for. Meantime it looks like you are accomplishing a lot with the space you have :)

Caesar Smith wrote:The breeding possibilities are endless! And I'll try to cross them to polystachya if I get the chance. The only thing missing is a decent plot of land. Not much space to grow giant vines in a suburban backyard. I'll be looking at land soon, to see if I can get a proper farm started.
.

Caesar, if you're interested PM and I'll send you contact info for someone I know who is also very interested in this sort of breeding work.

Greg Martin wrote:Caesar, if you're interested PM and I'll send you contact info for someone I know who is also very interested in this sort of breeding work.

PM sent!

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eBay vendor kero-ppi has a second "bulbifera" listing besides the one I posted. Marketed as an edible type, when I asked about the physical traits, he sent me several photos of his vines, which turned out to be pentaphylla (like the photos on the actual listing). Make sure when buying from him that you have the right variety.

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I've started packaging and sending out bulbils. And I have one request for everyone receiving my bulbils... Share them! Once they've started bearing, gift them, sell them, eBay them, pass 'em forward however you please. Let's make it so it's not so rare and hard to find anymore. Just make sure to keep track of the names... It'd be unfortunate if I went out of my way to obtain a "new" variety that I already have, further down the road.

And for the record, CV-1 is usually dormant until about May - July. Production for me starts around October, and ends around February.

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My package from my friend arrived today. Quite the haul! D. bulbifera "Odisha Yellow" and "Africa". 4 varieties of D. polystachya... I already had "Nagaimo" (which has long tubers), now I received "Ichoimo" (which has fan/ginkgo leaf-shaped tubers), "Chiba Tsukeneimo" (which has globular tubers and is a very shy bulbil-bearer), "Chiba Large" (which has branched tubers), and "Little-big" (a home-grown seed-based accession). I also received seeds of Phaseolus polystachios and P. x lunastachios (I'm not sure if that's the formal name, I just know it's originally from Colombia, a perennial hybrid of the P. polystachios with P. lunatus).

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My varietal count of D. bulbifera so far:

Bearing:
CV-1

Growing:
Sena

Dormant:
Steve's Hawaii
CV-2

Not yet arrived through the mail:
Chiang-saen Yellow
Pínczów

Bulbils (planted or in storage):
Mexico
Jim's Hawaii
Afrokorea (tentative name)
Tefoe Purple
Tefoe Yellow
Nonthaburi Yellow
Mae-sai Yellow
Odisha Yellow
Africa

Total so far: 15 varieties... And counting. This'll be a very interesting year indeed.

it will be interesting to see what you find regarding yield and flavor, i would also be very interested in if some are more cold hardy as well

C. West wrote:it will be interesting to see what you find regarding yield and flavor, i would also be very interested in if some are more cold hardy as well

For cold-hardiness, we'll have to wait on reports from the other growers, as PR never gets too cold, even in the high mountains.

As for flavor, I'm going to have to rely on it to distinguish (or conflate) two varieties... Chiang-saen just arrived, from eBay vendor Kero-ppi. I looked at both side-by-side, and could not find a single distinguishing feature between it and Mae-sai Yellow. I'll mark them separately for now with both names as tentative labels, but if I find no differences in flavor when I taste them at harvest time, I will be treating them as a single variety. If that were the case, then I wonder whether to keep the name of the one I named first (Mae-sai Yellow), or instead give them the regional name of the greater area where both cities are located (Chiang-rai Yellow).

I re-checked the package they came in. I probably should've done that from the start, but the obvious eludes me on occasion. Same package, same message, same person, same origin: "Mae-sai". So Kero-ppi might be an alternate account or a colaborator with GoodMice. The account is based in Chiang-saen, but the package came from Mae-sai, like the last bulbils. Thus ends the mystery, they are one and the same. I'll keep the original name, "Mae-sai", as that seems to be the place they all came from. I'm a bit bummed out that I spent extra cash on something I already had, but at least I gathered something of equal value: knowledge.

So in conclusion, buy from either source. The bulbifera you get from GoodMice or Kero-ppi on eBay are the same.

Hi all. I've noticed a bit of increased interest in the topic, so I gotta update.

I'm on lockdown right now. The pandemic is already getting a bit scary on the island, and I'm avoiding leaving the house as much as possible. what this means is I won't be shipping anything until the emergency is over... Basically, when the virus runs out of steam, or when some reliable medicine gets developed and distributed. Hopefully by next harvest season.

With that said, I don't have much available right now. Only the smallest CV-1 bulbils remain, though Sena is producing a small crop, apparently making it an off-season variety.

In other news, I managed to obtain two purple varieties. "Saipan Purple", which is just beginning to sprout, is the same one grown in Plant Assassin's video (YouTube), possibly a suavior type with somewhat conspicuous lenticels. Semi-toxic, so I'm not sure how useful it'll be to me, but you can breed edible types out of toxic stock, so there's that. The fact that people have eaten it without keeling over leads me to think it doesn't contain significant amounts of Diosgenin or Diosbulbin. However, I've been told that some who have eaten it ended up feeling drunk, a symptom of Dioscorine poisoning. I'm not sure if Dioscorine can cause cumulative damage or if it's a minor toxin, nor if it can be leached out with long cooking times or requires more complex preparation. Suffice it to say I won't be eating it until I figure out how to send a sample to a lab for analysis. It'd be great if I could breed something edible out of it, though.

"Tefoe Purple" was received as a tiny pair of bulbils and planted immediately, so I took no pictures. I was shown pictures of the original bulbils (which I will not share, as I've not gotten permission to do so). The photos depicted a bumpy dark brown suavior with deep purple flesh, like an Ube. I was told one person has eaten it, but that doesn't guarantee edibility... It's a wild one! Apparently, there are many different varieties growing wild in Florida, both edible and toxic, but the risk of eating a toxic one is so high, that they're not worth trying unless you can test them. Well Tefoe Purple is of Wild Floridian stock. I'm hopeful that it might be edible, given someone's already tried it, but I won't be trying it myself until I can get it tested.

Pics:

Forgot to mention, but I have now tasted my second Air Potato, first African: Sena. I chucked a small bulbil, skin & all, into a boiling pot of green bananas & codfish, so it came out nice and salty.

It did not taste the same! Quite different from CV-1. It tasted vaguely like Camansi Nut (think of a stronger combination of Chestnut & Chickpea), but a little milder. Now I'm curious as to the flavor of the other varieties. I'm thinking of keeping a bulbil on the table for a month, to see how it ages compared to CV-1.

I'm leaving this post here as a record and for convenience. With that said, the information posted below has been integrated into my original post. That is all.

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Hi all!

I have some corrections on the Etsy link for Babubotanicals. My original post no longer has the option to edit... Can we get a moderator to help me update? It would help prevent further misunderstanding.

In the meantime, I'll be posting the corrections here:

Babubotanicals sells two different varieties (and knows of a third one – which they don't sell –, bitter, requires boiling a few times to render it non-bitter). They sell both seeds and bulbils, but they sell them individually, so if you want both, you'll have to order both (assuming they're available at the same time, which they may not be). Each variety has its own listing, and they're not referred to as being the same.

The first variety, sold only as
bulbils, is the one I call Odisha Yellow, and lacks bitterness; they were never listed as bitter. They're not currently available... There's an "Inform when restocked" feature, but I've been told it doesn't work. The official listing is this one: https://www.etsy.com/listing/644196954/edible-dioscorea-bulbifera-non-bitter

The second variety – sold as seeds – has tiny bulbils, not considered edible by the seller due to its bitter flavor. It's reasonably consistent by seed, and is native to central India. Link here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/644244780/dioscorea-bulbifera-with-both-bulbs-and

Oh, yours are yellow! Then mine might not be bulbifera. Thank you for posting the ways to tell the species apart; if there are others besides bulbifera that produce aerial tubers, then I will need to look in detail and identify mine for sure.

Local Dominican farmers do not seem to have cultivar names like the ones you describe; I have been told of only two varieties, which they call simply white and yellow. Mine are the white, suited to the soil on my site which is not rocky; the yellow, I am told, does better where the soil is rocky.

I haven't eaten any of the aerial tubers yet, because I have been saving them for planting material. The yams get enormous, though! Here is a picture -- note that it is broken off; I couldn't get all of it out of the ground!

Jason Hernandez wrote:Oh, yours are yellow! Then mine might not be bulbifera. Thank you for posting the ways to tell the species apart; if there are others besides bulbifera that produce aerial tubers, then I will need to look in detail and identify mine for sure.

Local Dominican farmers do not seem to have cultivar names like the ones you describe; I have been told of only two varieties, which they call simply white and yellow. Mine are the white, suited to the soil on my site which is not rocky; the yellow, I am told, does better where the soil is rocky.

I haven't eaten any of the aerial tubers yet, because I have been saving them for planting material. The yams get enormous, though! Here is a picture -- note that it is broken off; I couldn't get all of it out of the ground!

How's the ID coming along? Have you managed to identify other species in your collection?

I maintain strict nomenclature for the bulbiferas to minimize the odds of redundant varieties and to perpetuate each individual line. That said, I wouldn't be surprised if I had a few repeated varieties: Jim and Steve's Hawaii might be one and the same, and Pínczow seems quite similar to those (and despite being obtained from and named for a European city, the vendor assures he originally obtained it from the US). As for the other yams with cultivar names, it's inconsistent. We do occasionally get named varieties in local markets (Florido is the standard alata here), most are just referred to by species name (Guinea Yam for rotundata, Mapués Yam for trifida, Gulembo Yam for Rajania cordata). They use cultivar names at the Ag research station, but the local farmers rarely do so.

That definitely looks like an alata to me! They grow feral in the hills here, there's always yams if you know where to look. The piece that stayed behind will likely sprout by itself as well.

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A contact of mine said Saipan Purple is about half as bitter as the wild bulbiferas. 1 boil makes it partially bitter, with an accompanying toxic effect – he ate a pound of it with one boil, and the bitterness was tolerable, but it left him with a headache. 2 boils is suspected of being sufficient to render it edible.

Despite the setback of a hungry chicken breaking its growing tip, it's already putting on growth like crazy. In fact, all my yams are growing, with only a couple of air potato varieties still beneath the soil surface (but even those have started the sprouting process).

The diversity in physical traits is surprising. The Asian types are relatively variable in both bulbil and vine traits, and those varieties that are similar to one another are growing apart in separate places on the trellis, no big risk of confusion. Two pockmarked, two bumpy, one knotted, one smooth, two purples, easy peasy.

Meanwhile, the African types are much more similar in vine traits, and I suspect in bulbil traits as well. I made the mistake of putting them all in the same spot, and they are growing in a tangle of vines that's hard to identify. I'm going to try to track each vine to its roots when the bulbils come in, otherwise I'm going to have to eat all the bulbils (none for planting) and re-propagate from the roots next season. Keeping each variety properly identified is crucial, I can't afford to make a mistake in ID'ing them, confusing them could cost me a variety.

I'll post some pics now, but let me say the photos don't do them justice, the vines are quite vibrant! I hope they're posted correctly (I'm noticing some pics seemingly flipped on their side as I upload). Here goes...

I put my CV-2s in the ground a week ago or so. I may just start a thread on them when they start doing something worth talking about.

Aj Hans wrote:I put my CV-2s in the ground a week ago or so. I may just start a thread on them when they start doing something worth talking about.

That'd be a CV-1, actually. Smooth sativa type, and the only one I've distributed so far. CV-2 is a bumpy phenotype, suavior, and the vine died back prematurely when I had to go on a trip the first year I grew it. I hadn't even labeled the planters, so I couldn't tell which pot had which root until they started growing. I've started labeling the different pots as they grew and produced, and only four remain unlabeled. CV-2 is at least one of those, maybe all four of 'em. I hope I get a big crop, my source told me they're tastier than CV-1!

Post the pics when they come in, I'm excited to see how they do in different locations.

Yes. CV-1 rather.

I have a small backlog of people interested in the air potatoes. I had decided against shipping mainly because of the pandemic... It gets complicated for me. In the past, I'd always have to prepare the package, take it to the USPS, get a quote, bring it back home and communicate the price, only to go out again to ship it later. But I'm thinking it'd be simpler to cut out the middle steps...

There may be a scale somewhere around the house. I'll look for it, or buy a new one if it's not there. That way, I can weigh the packages at home and confirm the shipping cost by phone, saving me an unnecessary trip to the USPS. If I could do this, I'd be willing to ship again.

I have a few Sena bulbils in storage, and Jim's Hawaii is entering production much earlier than expected. I gotta go through my backlog first, but after that, I'll keep y'all posted if things go well.

Nice, Caesar!
By the way, my bulbs are still sleeping...

Those purple bulbiferas are crazy. Are they more vigorous than the other bulbiferas? I ask because I’ve notice that my Ube’s are much more vigorous than my regular D. alata’s.

Apologies for my delay, I've some updates to give:

I haven't shipped anything yet. I never found the scale for weighing packages. I browsed the results of an amazon search, but couldn't find the right balance between accessibly priced, good reviews (less likely to malfunction or break), and good weight range (some have a lower or upper threshold beyond which they won't weigh the package). I'll keep searching, but for now I haven't contacted anyone on the list yet.

André Troylilas wrote:Nice, Caesar!
By the way, my bulbs are still sleeping...

That's a minor red flag, does this still hold true? A long dormancy for that variety is normal, my main concern is whether it'll start bearing bulbils in time to beat the winter cold (that won't be as much of an issue if they're well protected, I think).

Thomas Black wrote:Those purple bulbiferas are crazy. Are they more vigorous than the other bulbiferas? I ask because I’ve notice that my Ube’s are much more vigorous than my regular D. alata’s.

Saipan Purple is currently my largest, longest and strongest vine (despite being the last to sprout and having resprouted from a chicken attack early on) so there may be some truth to that. Tefoe Purple is my thinnest vine, but it came from a very tiny bulbil.

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Something to note for folks in cold climates... The Hawaiian varieties (maybe they're all one clone) are my most precocious producers by far. CV-1 doesn't usually form bulbils until October, and that's only the earliest ones (production starts in earnest around December). Meanwhile, both Steve's Hawaii and Jim's Hawaii started bearing just before summer, maybe around April or May. I no longer have Steve's Hawaii (I have to re-acquire it), but Jim's Hawaii currently has at least 3 bulbils, and one of them is looking to reach the 1lb mark. Early production seems like it might be a useful trait where cold winters are concerned. None of my other varieties (African or Asian) have bulbils yet.

The few off-vine stored bulbils I have are from my most delayed producer... Sena starts growing in late summer or early fall, and only starts producing bulbils deep into winter and spring the following year (I just harvested my last bulbil off the recently dried vine).

And finally, bulbil age may affect the vine's growth through the season. My eatliest Sena bulbil is already sprouting, but the rest of them are still quite dormant. It could be that the earliest sprouters are also the earliest to bear. This is something that deserves detailed study... Far beyond my current capacity, unfortunately.

I am not sure what your scale budget is, or where you are located, but I adore this scale from Amazon Canada. So much so I have three myself and bought two more as gifts for others in wildlife rescue.

ASIN: B073SN4WC8
Brand: Angel
Model: SS-400

It weighs in 5 gram increments, surface size is 16 and 1/2 inches by 13 and 3/4 inches (42x35cm), self leveling feet, black LED numbers,  backlit blue, each number about an inch and a half high, sealed, pressure touch buttons (hold, tare, mode, ON/OFF) on the rear of the reader module. Plug in (6+ foot cord) or battery operated (super efficient).

I use them for weighing animals, and it easily tracks 100 gram critter and goes up to 400lbs.

They often have them (right now) for about $70, but regular price is $150.