Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
Dioscorea transversa
Common name
Native yam
Family
Dioscoreaceae
Where found
Forest and moist gullies. Coast and ranges north from Wollongong.
Notes
Herb with twining stems to 4 m long, arising annually from a tuber often deep in the soil. Stems hairless. Leaves alternating up the stems, usually 5–13 cm long, 20–80 mm wide, hairless, upper surface glossy, lower surface somewhat dull, sometimes purplish, tips with a long drawn out point, bases cordate or rarely with pointed spreading lobes. Male and female flowers on different plants, small, with 6 greenish 'petals' in 2 whorls, each 1.5-2.5 mm long. Male flowers rounded, in single or paired spikes 3–6 cm long. Female flowers elongated, in single or paired elongated clusters usually 10–20 cm long. Flowering: spring. Seed cases usually fawn to brownish, sometimes purple, papery, with 3 wings. Seeds flat, with a wing all round the seed.
PlantNET description: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Dioscorea~transversa (accessed 12 January, 2021)
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