Kedut
Dioscorea polyclados

Family: Dioscoreaceae

What it is like

A yam. It keeps growing from year to year by sprouting from tubers. It is hairy. The vines are 30 m long and twine to the right. The tubers are produced from a woody corm. They can be 2.5 m deep in the soil. They occur as swollen ends on long stalks. The flesh is white. The leaves are simple and opposite. The leaf stalk is 6 cm long. It often has prickles. The leaf blade is 12-25 cm long by 12-22 cm wide. The male flowering stalks are 30 cm long and occur as 1-4 together. The female flowering stalks are 20 cm long. The capsule has wings.

There are about 650 species of Dioscorea.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in lower hill forest up to 700 m altiitude.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Cambodia, Indochina, Indonesia, Malaysia, SE Asia

How it is used for food

The tubers need to be boiled several times or baked before eating.

Edible parts

Tubers, root

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Domlong romeat, Kedut

Synonyms

Dioscorea polyclados Hook.f. var oblongifolia Uline & R. Knuth; Dioscorea polyclados Hook.f. var velutina (O. Kuntze) Burk;