OF THE CAROLINAS & GEORGIA

Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Dioscoreales

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Dioscorea polystachya   FAMILY Dioscoreaceae   Go to FSUS key



SYNONYMOUS WITH (MISAPPLIED) PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Dioscorea oppositifolia   FAMILY Dioscoreaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America

Dioscorea polystachya

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 043-01-001:

Dioscorea batatas   FAMILY Dioscoreaceae

 

COMMON NAME:
Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam


         To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm120428_873

April    Oconee County    SC

Clemson Forest

Lvs heart-shaped to triangular w elongated tips; basal lobes often angled, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm120428_877

April    Oconee County    SC

Clemson Forest

Leaf veins slightly indented (appearing quilted), converging at tip & base, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm120428_887

April    Oconee County    SC

Clemson Forest

Perennial from large vertically-oriented tubers, per Weakley's Flora.

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm120428_892

April    Oconee County    SC

Clemson Forest

Stems terete, per Weakley's Flora (2015).

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm140528_249

May    Greenville County    SC

Swamp Rabbit Trail

Leaf margins halberd-shaped, the sides with a concave portion, per Weakley's Flora (2012).

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm140623_206b

June    Greenville County    SC

Swamp Rabbit Trail

Male spikes bearing flowers singly, flowers bracteate, internodes < 2 mm, per Flora of North America.

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm140625_350

June    Greenville County    SC

Cleveland Park

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm140625_353

June    Greenville County    SC

Cleveland Park

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm190604_8986

June    Greenville County    SC

Tall Pines Wildlife Management Area

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

Stephanie C. Brundage    scb_062119EClayCty10ed

June    Clay County    NC

Roadside

Rachis of male spikes obviously zigzagged; flowers sessile, per Flora of China.

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm140730_209

July    Greenville County    SC

Cleveland Park

Small potatolike aerial tubers (bulbils) form in leaf axils in late summer, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm140809_449

August    Greenville County    SC

Swamp Rabbit Trail

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

JK Marlow    jkm141005_039

October    Greenville County    SC

Bunched Arrowhead Heritage Preserve

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org    bug_5421977

November        

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

Chris Evans, Illinois Wildlife Action Plan, Bugwood.org    bug_2120019

Month Unknown        

Dies back in winter but able to cover small trees in a year, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

Chris Evans, Illinois Wildlife Action Plan, Bugwood.org    bug_2156083

Month Unknown        

image of Dioscorea polystachya, Cinnamon Vine, Chinese Yam

Steve Hurst, USDA NRCS PLANTS Database, Bugwood.org     bug_5307033

Month Unknown        

 

 

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Dioscorea polystachya   FAMILY Dioscoreaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH (MISAPPLIED) PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Dioscorea oppositifolia   FAMILY Dioscoreaceae

SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Dioscorea polystachya

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 043-01-001:
Dioscorea batatas   FAMILY Dioscoreaceae

 

Find by SCIENTIFIC NAME:

473

Herbaceous vine
Perennial
Dioecious

Habitat: Thickets, disturbed areas, bottomland forests, per Weakley's Flora

Non-native: China

Common in Mountains & Carolina Piedmont, rare in GA Coastal Plain (uncommon elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)

map
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.

Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)


INVASIVE

This plant is causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:

 

LEAVES:
Simple
Alternate or opposite

FLOWER:
Summer
Greenish-white
6 tepals
6 stamens
Inferior ovary
Unisexual

FRUIT:
Summer
Capsule

 

TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!



 


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