Chupri Alu / Greater Yam
Dioscorea alata
Also known as Asiatic Yam, Yam, Water Yam, White Yam
- Habit
- Climber
- Found in India
- Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
How to identify Chupri Alu
Identify Chupri Alu by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a climber habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Large edible tuber (greater/water yam).
- Confirm leaf shape: Cordate (heart-shaped).
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: Throughout the year.
- In India, compare location records such as Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Dioscoreaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Chupri Alu.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Dioscorea alata
- Genus
- Dioscorea
- Family
- Dioscoreaceae
- Habit
- Climber
- Habitat
- Dry deciduous forests
- Habitat type
- Forest
- Distribution
- Cultivated in tropics
- Found in India
- Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf shape
- Cordate (heart-shaped)recorded
Characters marked “recorded” are for Chupri Alu itself; the rest are typical of the Dioscoreaceae family.
Local Names
- Hindi
- चुपड़ी आलू Chupri alu, Kada kanda
- Nepali
- घर तरुल Ghar tarul
- Bengali
- চুপড়ি আলু Chupri Alu, গাছ আলু Gaach Alu, গাছ আলু
- Tamil
- Chirakavalli, Iyamkilanku, Kappa-kavali
- Telugu
- పెండలం
- Kannada
- Dandaanu, Dappa genasu, Hennu genasu
- Malayalam
- Kachchil, Kachil, Katsjil-kelengu
- Marathi
- Chinem, Chipari-aalu, Goradu
Chupri Alu in India
Greater yam, called चुपड़ी आलू Chupri alu (Hindi), Chirakavalli (Tamil), పెండలం (Telugu), Dandaanu (Kannada), Kachchil (Malayalam), Chinem (Marathi), is grown for its large starchy tuber. Dioscorea alata is cultivated across Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, usually trained up stakes or living supports.
Uses
The tuber is boiled, fried or curried as a starchy vegetable, similar in use to potato but with a denser, often purple-tinged flesh in some varieties.
How to Identify Chupri Alu
A twining perennial vine grown from a large underground tuber, with square or winged stems and broad, heart-shaped leaves in opposite pairs on the upper stem. Small bulbils sometimes form in the leaf axils, which can themselves be planted to grow new vines.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Greater yam called in different Indian languages?
- चुपड़ी आलू Chupri alu (Hindi); Chirakavalli (Tamil); పెండలం (Telugu); Dandaanu (Kannada); Kachchil (Malayalam); Chinem (Marathi); চুপড়ি আলু Chupri Alu (Bengali).
- Is greater yam the same as sweet potato?
- No — they're unrelated crops: greater yam (Dioscorea alata) is a monocot vine in the yam family, while sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) is a dicot in the morning-glory family, though both produce starchy tubers.
- What are the small growths in the leaf axils?
- Those are bulbils — small vegetative buds that can be planted directly to grow a new vine, in addition to the main tuber.
Dioscoreaceae
Yam Family
Chupri Alu belongs to the Dioscoreaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
All plant problem & care guidesMore in Dioscoreaceae
View all DioscoreaceaeSources: GBIF — Dioscorea alata (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Dioscorea alata (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)