Indian yam

bulbifera); and yampee, or cush-cush (D. trifida).

The yampee, or cush-cush (Dioscorea trifida), originated in South America and the West Indies. D. alata, the white yam of India and the Malay Peninsula, is widely cultivated for its enlarged roots. Elephant’s-foot (D. [or Testudinaria] elephantipes), grown in Africa, is used as a famine food.…

Indian yam (D. trifida) and winged, or water, yam (D. alata) are the edible species most widely diffused in tropical and subtropical countries. The tubers of D. alata sometimes weigh 45 kg (100 pounds). Guinea yam (D. rotundata) and yellow Guinea yam (D. cayenensis) are…