Hawaiian Name(s): pi‘a, pi‘iaScientific Name: Dioscorea pentaphylla
Vernacular Name: pi‘a Hawai‘i, wild yam
Family: Discoreaceae
Status: Polynesian introduction
Authority: L.
Description: Herbs with palmate leaves (five lobes); tubers of various shapes:bulbous, turnip-shaped & elongated.
Habitat Most common in windward mesic valleys 155–325 m on most main islands (Wagner et al. 1990:1439).
Medicines:
Non Medicinal Uses: Tubers eaten in times of famine (Krauss 1993:11,12).
Specific gravity of wood: n/a
Famous Locations:
Mele:
`Ōlelo Noeau:
Dye Color and Parts:
Kino lau:
Location on Bishop Museum Kalihi Campus:
Propagation Information:
Seed: Seed length approximately 7.5 mm. Photograph: B.Kennedy.
Click for image
