These are the largest Dioscorea alata bulbils we’ve ever found:
My second daughter found these beneath the bitter pear tree at the corner of the Grocery Row Gardens.
The first year we were here, that pear was loaded with little fruit. We tasted them and they were awful. Very astringent. I believe they are a seedling hybrid between Bradford pear, European pear and Asian pear, as it exhibits characteristics of all of those species. Anyhow, since it wasn’t good to eat, I threw a couple of yam bulbils at the base.
Now, maybe three years later, it’s covered with yam vines (and bitter pears).
Hurricane Isaias blew some of the bulbils off the vines and we found them while surveying for damage, but my daughter won the “biggest bulbil” award this time.
Though D. alata bulbils are edible cooked, they are not very palatable.
However, a bulbil this big has a ton of stored energy in it, so when we plant them, they should give us nice, big roots in the first year. Big bulbil = bigger plant.
In related news: yesterday I finished the first draft of a little book on true yams and sent it off to be proofread by Mrs. Paolini, of Grocery Row Gardening fame.
I may have to lay this book out myself, so wish me luck. The regular layout guy I use is too busy to help.
