Dioscorea villosa Linnaeus. Section: Macropoda. Common name: Wild Yam. Phenology: Apr-Jun; Sep-Nov. Habitat: Moist forests and woodlands. Distribution: NJ, NY, s. ON, WI, MN, and IA south to n. FL and TX.
Origin/Endemic status: Native
Taxonomy Comments: Various specific and infraspecific taxa are here combined. Ward (1977c) stated that "a recent study at Duke University by Shu-fun Au, unfinished due to the death of its author, tentatively recognized D. hirticaulis and D. floridana but combined all other entities without distinction under D. villosa". Further study is needed. Al-Shehbaz & Schubert (1989) indicate that the lectotype of D. villosa has pubescent stems; nomenclatural changes would apparently be needed if varietal status of the two named varieties of D. villosa proves warranted.
Synonymy ⓘ: = Ar, Can, ETx1, FNA26, K4, Mi, NE, NY, POWO, Tn, Va, WH3; = Dioscorea villosa L.; > Dioscorea glauca Muhl. ex Bartlett — S; > Dioscorea hirticaulis Bartlett — F, G, S, Ward (1977c); > Dioscorea quaternata J.F. Gmel. — C, F, G, Mo1, NcTx, NS, Pa, S, Tx, Al-Shehbaz & Schubert (1989), Ward (1977c); > Dioscorea quaternata J.F. Gmel. var. glauca (Muhl.) Fernald — Il, Tat; > Dioscorea quaternata J.F. Gmel. var. quaternata — Il; < Dioscorea villosa L. — S13; > Dioscorea villosa L. — F, G, Il, Mo1, NcTx, NS, Pa, S, Tat, Tx, W, Ward (1977c); > Dioscorea villosa L. var. hirticaulis (Bartlett) H.E.Ahles — C, RAB, Al-Shehbaz & Schubert (1989); > Dioscorea villosa L. var. villosa — C, RAB; Dioscorea villosa L. — (basionym)
Links to other floras: = Dioscorea villosa - FNA26
Wetland Indicator Status:
- Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain: FACW
- Eastern Mountains and Piedmont: FAC
- Great Plains: FAC
- Midwest: FAC
- Northcentral & Northeast: FAC
Heliophily ⓘ: 5
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© Bruce A. Sorrie | Original Image ⭷
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Horticultural Information
| Intro | Stems | Leaves | Inforescence | Flowers | Fruits | Comments | Height | plant sale text | bloom table text | description | stems | leaves | inflorescence | flowers | fruits | comments | cultural notes | germination code | native range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Perennial herbaceous vine found in moist hardwood forests. | Stems angled, twining, light green or reddish, smooth to sparsely hairy. | Leaves alternate (sometimes whorled at base of vine), petiolate, heart-shaped with long tip, to 5 in. long, with 7-11 curved parallel veins, smooth above and short-furry beneath. | Flowers all male or all female on a single plant, in panicles (male) or racemes (female) from leaf axils, whitish-green to yellow-green and about 1/8 in. wide; male flowers with 6 tepals and 6 fertile stamens, female flowers with 6 tepals and a large ovary and 6 infertile stamens. | Fruit a golden-green, 3-winged, ellipsoid capsule that becomes tan and papery in winter. | to 23 ft. long | Perennial herbaceous vine found in moist hardwood forests. | Stems angled, twining, light green or reddish, smooth to sparsely hairy. | Leaves alternate (sometimes whorled at base of vine), petiolate, heart-shaped with long tip, to 5 in. long, with 7-11 curved parallel veins, smooth above and short-furry beneath. | Flowers all male or all female on a single plant, in panicles (male) or racemes (female) from leaf axils, whitish-green to yellow-green and about 1/8 in. wide; male flowers with 6 tepals and 6 fertile stamens, female flowers with 6 tepals and a large ovary and 6 infertile stamens. | Fruit a golden-green, 3-winged, ellipsoid capsule that becomes tan and papery in winter. | eastern & central United States |
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