Haryana Forest Flora
A Comprehensive Database of Ligneous Plants of Haryana (India)
Designed & Developed by Bioinformatics Centre,Forest Research Institute, Dehradun
| Family: Dioscoreaceae | Genus: Dioscorea | Species: Dioscorea bulbifera Linn. ( रतालू ) |
Habit |
Leaf |
Flower |
Fruit |
Bark |
|
|
| Synonym | Dioscorea sativa Thunb |
Flower Color | White |
| Common Name | Ratalu, Zimikand | Flower Type | Spikelet |
| English / Trade Name | Aerial yam, Air potato, Air yam, Bitter yam, Cheeky yam, Potato yam, Wild yam | Flowering Period | July-Sept |
| Vernacular /Local Name | Ratalu | Fruiting Period | Oct-Dec |
| Altitude | Upto 1500m | Fruit Type | Capsule |
| Habit | Climber | Fruit Details | Capsule oblong, winged. |
| Habitat | Waste places, forest edges and scrub jungles | Bark Type | Smooth |
| Distribution | Found as an understory plant of deciduous forests from plains. Common. | Bark Details | Greenish bark |
| Distribution in Haryana | Ambala, Bhiwani, Faridabad, Fatehabad, Gurgaon, Kurukshetra, Morni-Pinjore, Rewari, Sonepat, Yamuna Nagar | Origin | Native |
| Leaf Type | Simple | ||
| Leaf Arrangement | Alternate (leaves born singly along stem) | ||
| Leaf Shape | Cordate | ||
| Description of Species | Annual-perennial, glabrous, slender, climber; tubers solitary, globose or ovoid; stem angular or ribbed, bearing numerous, axillary, grey-brown, warted bulbils. Leaves alternate, broadly ovate-cordate or suborbicular, acuminate, glabrous. Flowers unisexual, small, arranged in slender, axillary, clustered, drooping spikes. Male spikes long; flowers small, pale-green. Female spikes pendulous. Tepals linear-lanceolate, greenish-white, turning to purple. Capsule oblong, winged. | Leaf Details | Leaves alternate, broadly ovate-cordate or suborbicular, acuminate, glabrous |
