A slender twining vine to 5 m, stems annual. Tuber to c. 10 cm long, ovoid, fleshy, with dense fine fibrous roots, periderm pale brown, parenchyma white or yellowish. Indumentum of vegetative parts and inflorescence of simple, straight, quite coarse 0.1-0.6 mm long hairs, often brown or grey in colour, stems and fruit glabrescent, leaves densely pubescent on both surfaces to pubescent on veins and margins only, reproductive parts always pubescent and often with longer hairs than vegetative parts. Stems unarmed, to c. 5 mm in diam., sometimes pigmented; small, brown, tuberculate bulbils sometimes present in leaf axils. Leaf digitately 3-7(-9)-foliolate, rarely entire; petioles 0.6-10 cm, petiolules 0.5-5(-10) mm; posterior leaflets 1.0-8.8(-14.6) x 0.5-6.4 cm, often asymmetric on the basal side of the leaflet, especially in 3-foliolate material, occasionally bifid, intermediate leaflets (where present) 1.6-9.3 x 0.4-4.7 cm, terminal leaflet 2.4-10.8(-15.0) x 0.5-6.8 cm, all elliptic to oblanceolate to obovate or linear, sometimes broadly so, rarely suborbicular, rhombic or spathulate, bases cuneate except in asymmetric posterior leaflets, apices rounded to truncate or rarely slightly emarginate, with an apiculus of very variable length formed by the excurrent midrib, each leaflet with a single midrib. Male inflorescences either solitary or in clusters in axils of vegetative shoots or compound, floral bracts subdense to dense and covering rachis, giving a catkin-like appearance, 0.4-7.8 cm long, spicate, peduncles 0.2-3.1(-5) cm long or rarely inflorescence sessile; female inflorescence 0.7-11.8 mm long, peduncle 0.8-12.8 cm long. Flowers often sweetly scented, tepals scarcely differentiated. Male flower sessile to pedicellate, pedicel to 1.3(-2) mm long; floral bracts 1 per pedicel, 2.3-6.7(-8.5) x 0.8-4.6 mm, ovate to lanceolate or elliptic, apex acute to long-acuminate, white, cream, yellow, pink or green, flower often darker; outer tepals 0.9-2.3 x 0.4-1.5 mm, ovate to lanceolate, acute to acuminate, chartaceous, dorsally pubescent; inner tepals 0.9-2.4 x 0.3-1.2 mm, ovate to lanceolate, acute to acuminate, membranous, ± glabrous; anthers 0.2-0.6 x 0.2-0.7 mm, globose, filaments 0.05-0.2 mm, staminodes 0.6-1.7 mm long, apex petaloid, oblong to elliptic, acuminate, base filiform. Female flower sessile; floral bracts 1.9-6.1 x 0.8-4.6 mm, ovate to lanceolate, acute to acuminate; outer tepals 0.8-2.3 x 0.4-1.3 mm, inner tepals 0.8-2.3 x 0.3-1.1 mm, broadly elliptic to elliptic-oblong, concave, each subtending a staminode, 0.5-0.4 mm long, clavate, ovary 2.1-6.1 mm long at an thesis, oblong to elliptic, pubescent, style 0.2-0.6(-0.7) mm, stigma lobes spreading, linear. Capsule 15-34 x 9-18 mm, oblong to elliptic or slightly obovate in outline, base truncate to slightly cordate, apex obtuse to rounded, indumentum sparse except near axis. Seed 3.5-7 x 2-4 mm, often with a small apical projection, wing 4-14 x 2.5-6 mm, oblong to elliptic, apex obtuse to truncate.
More
Tuber similar to that of 17, D. dumetorum.. Twining stems up to 6 m. high, up trees, or spreading over lower shrubs, sometimes trailing along the ground, glabrous or sparsely pubescent with minute gland-tipped hairs and longer simple hairs, glabrescent, without prickles.. Leaves alternate with 3–5(–7) leaflets; petiole up to 11.5 mm. long, usually much shorter; leaflets with petiolule up to 5(–15) mm. long, extremely variable in size and shape, ovate, obovate, elliptic, lanceolate, oblanceolate or linear-lanceolate, up to 14 cm. × 11 cm., 11 cm. × 5 cm. or 10 cm. × 1 cm. according to shape, excluding the 2–5(–9) mm. long apiculum, rounded to acute at the apex, rounded to cuneate at the base, never 3-nerved from near the base; indumentum of sparse, short, straight or longer, denser, woolly hairs, denser beneath, sometimes glabrescent above, usually colourless but sometimes rusty in appearance; lateral leaflets somewhat asymmetrical.. Aerial tubers sometimes present.. Male inflorescences shortly pedunculate catkins, 2–5(–7) in the axils of the upper foliage leaves, or those of very reduced leaves, or often occurring in pendulous leafless panicles up to 40 cm. long; peduncle 4–12(–38) mm. long; catkins up to 3(–6) cm. long; bracts usually concave, ovate, acuminate, the apex often attenuate, 3–5(–7) mm. long, densely pubescent towards base, otherwise glabrous, or less densely pubescent throughout; perianth completely hidden by the bracts. Stamens 3; staminodes 3.. Female inflorescence pendulous, spicate, up to 17 cm. long, with flowers close together at first, the internodes elongating greatly in age; flowers directed downwards; perianth depressed subglobose, pubescent especially on lower part of lobes. Ovary ± 5 mm. long, densely pubescent.. Capsule as fig. 2/2, p. 5, (2–)2.5(–3) cm. long, glabrescent.. Seeds as fig. 2/2a.
A yam. It is a strong slender twiner or climber. It can be 6 m long. The vine twines to the left. It does not have spines. There are a cluster of tubers that are oval or long. The stems are wiry. The leaves are alternate. The leaves have 5 (3-7) leaflets. The leaflets are often arched backwards. The leaves taper to the base and have a threadlike tip. The leaves are 5 cm long by 2 cm wide. Leaf shape can vary. There can be lumpy bulbils along the stems. The female flowers do not have stalks. They are in single slender spikes in the axils of leaves.
Annual tubers usually thin and joined together in groups of 3-6.
A non-spiny climber 15-20 ft. high
Home
