Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about True Yams (Food Security on a Backyard Scale)

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  • Опубліковано 20 гру 2024

КОМЕНТАРІ • 124

  • @davidthegood
    @davidthegood  16 днів тому +15

    This presentation was made possible by my Skool community.
    We do talks like this regularly, and have great discussions, food forest courses and even a plant swap.
    If you want to support this work and see many more exclusive videos and interviews, join us here: www.skool.com/the-survival-gardener
    Thank you for watching!

  • @mollytrap
    @mollytrap 14 днів тому +9

    I was cutting up and roasting seminole pumpkins while listening to this video and then a commercial came on and my hands were too messy to hit the skip button, so you just got a billion ad dollars from me listening to some dude talk about his abs for 30 minutes against my will.

  • @Carolynfoodforest355
    @Carolynfoodforest355 16 днів тому +17

    I have 3 or 4 pieces of discoria alota in my backyard that I put in the ground in March of 2019 after you did the Garden talk here. You gave me these and told me to put in the ground. I have never dug them up. I just keep telling myself they are for emergencies. They are probably huge.

  • @tamunk
    @tamunk 16 днів тому +7

    The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Ibadan, Nigeria has a strong breeding program for the spiny vined Dioscorea rotundata and also does some work on the smooth vined Dioscorea alata. As a Peace Corps volunteer in Sierra Leone (8 degrees north latitude) I once saw a true yam dug up for an agricultural show that filled up half of a pickup truck bed.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  14 днів тому +1

      Man, I would love to visit and see that program.

  • @HeatherNaturaly
    @HeatherNaturaly 15 днів тому +4

    I have a Vietnamese channel I watch and they are always digging a variety of yam that grows straight down. They often dig holes a meter/Yard or more deep to harvest them. Yes, they are VERY delicate. There's the Greater Yam and the lesser yam that they harvest. One looks like MASSIVE um.. hairy balls. Like the one in your propagation segment. The other is often flatish, many feet long and very fragile. They both have very white flesh.

  • @russellstraker8040
    @russellstraker8040 15 днів тому +2

    My loquat tree has produced 68mm diameter fruit this year. Last year the biggest was 65mm.

  • @qualqui
    @qualqui 15 днів тому +2

    And these Ladies and Gentlemen are the TRUE YAMS! Wow, just as good as potatoes, sweet potatoes but no more confusing, orange-colored sweet potatoes as yams.Checking to see if Dioscorea alata is available here in Mexico and also the red-tape needed to be made before we can import something.😀

  • @JustSumGuy
    @JustSumGuy 16 днів тому +13

    Pumpkin used to be my favorite crop than David showed us true Yams. RIP I'm down the rabbit hole got 4 varieties this year 😂.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  16 днів тому +4

      You are as bad as I am.

    • @tinaschantz5000
      @tinaschantz5000 15 днів тому

      Where do you get them?

    • @Rachiosity-nk8be
      @Rachiosity-nk8be 6 днів тому +2

      I’m so sorry but don’t you mean “You are as bad as I yam.” Apologies from Australia. And many thanks for spreading your knowledge far and wide. I yam very grateful.

  • @JonyBuss
    @JonyBuss 15 днів тому +1

    Got lots of yam for growing all kinds thanks to you brother shalom

  • @You_Can_Grow_Too
    @You_Can_Grow_Too 15 днів тому

    These videos are so beneficial because, for me, it can be very intimidating to grow and eat a crop I don't know what to do with. But, many of these what seem to be unusual and rare garden crops, are becoming a big part of my suburban garden, and are doing well! So thank you!

  • @bluecedar7914
    @bluecedar7914 15 днів тому +2

    54:05 There are a number of Chinese gardening UA-camr videos showing a good method for growing straight easy to dig polystachys yams. In short you either lay plastic guttering near horizontally - slight fall away - just below the soil surface or make 10cm diameter troughs in the soil and lay thick plastic film over the troughs. You plant the young plants or heads at one end, cap off that end, then fill the gutters/ troughs with good well draining soil. The yams grow along these gutters/troughs long and straight, and are easy to dig out without damage the following winter.

    • @bluecedar7914
      @bluecedar7914 15 днів тому

      Now that I have young bulbil plants, I will be trying this technique this season using the film. I'll see how it goes.

    • @bluecedar7914
      @bluecedar7914 15 днів тому

      m.ua-cam.com/video/J4lUgEYSb1s/v-deo.html

    • @bluecedar7914
      @bluecedar7914 15 днів тому

      ua-cam.com/video/u8H74t-m9LE/v-deo.html

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому +1

      Thank you. We talked about that very thing in a Zoom call in the community last week. Very good idea.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому +1

      Thank you for the additional links, too.

  • @sunnydayz4040
    @sunnydayz4040 15 днів тому +1

    I look forward to the book!

  • @AProAmature
    @AProAmature 13 днів тому

    Thank you, this is the video I've been looking for. Please do right a book on yams, I'm very interested.

  • @DsHomeyGarden
    @DsHomeyGarden 16 днів тому +5

    Hey there.... I keep watching you talking about the "True Yam" but David.....where can I buy seeds or tubers? I'm in Atlanta area.....PLEASE HELP... Thank good

  • @oldscout7
    @oldscout7 15 днів тому +3

    David, I just wanted to say what a blessing you have been to me. I wish that we were neighbors, man! Had you been in the Garden of Eden with Adam, I'm certain that y'all would have gotten along FAMOUSLY and been BEST BUDS! I have learned SO MUCH from your videos...THANK YOU, SIR and God bless you!

  • @ren2ski
    @ren2ski 13 днів тому

    Thank you so much for the video, I’m going to grow some yams :) would definitely buy a book David on Yams if you wrote one 😊

  • @carlschmitt9562
    @carlschmitt9562 15 днів тому +1

    Yams are a great adventure.

  • @feralkevin
    @feralkevin 13 днів тому

    I have grown the polystachya in containers before and it would make the fat root in the ground underneath the pot by growing through the holes in the pot! And still had the same issue you described.

  • @kathleenebsen2659
    @kathleenebsen2659 13 днів тому

    I grow Dioscorea polystachya, aka Chinese yam, cinnamon vine and nagaimo. It is hardy in Zone 6! I grow them in 25 gallon pots. I just harvest the roots by tipping out of the pot. They also produce lovely little yam berries that taste like potatoes. The tubers should be peeled. The flesh has slippery and slimy texture like okra. My favorite way to prepare this is to chop it and puree it in a food processor and then make into waffles. I don’t add any other ingredients. I freeze the waffles to store my harvest. My family loves them.

  • @cantseetheforestforthetree9673
    @cantseetheforestforthetree9673 11 днів тому

    Four years ago now I was gifted a bulbul of D. bulbiferae by an older nurseryman here in middle TN who has since passed. He raised bamboo and sold it around the country, and I believe he had the largest collection of bamboo species in the U.S. at roughly 200 species as I recall. He also bred tree peonies and was working on breeding cold hardy pomegranates, and was a collector of plants in general. The bulbiferae he gifted looks to be the first variety you showed here, and I have been growing it the past three years here in zone 7. The first two years they began producing in late June, setting a few bulbils, and then put on a bunch more starting mid to late august with the largest being big enough to fill both hands ( I didn’t weigh them unfortunately) This year they didn’t put on until August, likely due to the cooler spring and my not bothering to baby them the way I had previously. All of this is to say that they do seem to be a viable crop here in zone 7.

  • @babetteisinthegarden6920
    @babetteisinthegarden6920 16 днів тому +1

    Now I know everything I need to know. Thank you very much.

  • @mjk9388
    @mjk9388 16 днів тому

    I'm getting into Yams next year (planting the bulbils for the first time), so I'm excited to watch a video that encompasses all the other yam info from the other videos David has produced.

  • @johnliberty3647
    @johnliberty3647 15 днів тому +1

    I am not doing a great job of keeping Name alive through winter either but luckily I got bulbils from scrubland Sam and I suspect I will have a better survival rate with those over winter than I did from Name I got from Publix.

  • @bukkyn4877
    @bukkyn4877 15 днів тому

    I am amazed that you grew this in the US! It's a staple in West Africa. There are so many ways to cook and eat this. Cook and serve with tomato sauce/fish sauce/eggs. They can be fried and grilled and served with sauce as well.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому +1

      I learned a lot about yams from Caribbean farmers. A wonderful root! Many great types in Africa we can't get here.

  • @tabithacarter5692
    @tabithacarter5692 13 днів тому

    I have a purple yam plants in my backyard and it gives me a decent size for 10 months.

  • @colettemorgan4503
    @colettemorgan4503 15 днів тому

    The yams they takes about 10months to ripen. Plant march to December if in cold climates. In warmer climates you can plant any time

  • @melanieallen3655
    @melanieallen3655 15 днів тому +1

    😮omg luv the yam!!!

  • @sansomspressurecleaningpoo9519
    @sansomspressurecleaningpoo9519 16 днів тому

    Very nice. Thank you for sharing. God bless y’all ❤

  • @DDWASH9595
    @DDWASH9595 15 днів тому +1

    GREAT PRESENTATION. Next year I wanna go crazy with tubers. Yams chayote and jicama. How’s the jicama coming along DTG

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому +1

      I planted one root. It grew vines and set some seed, but the pods did not quite mature before frost.

  • @GrandmomZoo
    @GrandmomZoo 16 днів тому +2

    Yam Good video DTG! Yam Good!😊

  • @admiralsunshine
    @admiralsunshine 16 днів тому

    Thank you for all this info Mr The Good, true yams go a long way toward scratching that food security itch, especially in my wooded home where gardening has been difficult.
    I have some Purple Ube in the ground, and I've ordered chinese and greater yams from the good gardens etsy store ✌

  • @jeaniedeveau
    @jeaniedeveau 15 днів тому

    I have the invasive air potato here in Orlando. Last year a small town called belle isle that's still Orlando released the beetle and they came to my yard. The didn't totally destroy the leaves but they made good progress. This year i had less than half come up and they almost destroyed the leaves. I pick up the air potatoes and toss them in the trash when i find them now.

  • @jeaniedeveau
    @jeaniedeveau 15 днів тому

    I found a white smooth cylinder longer shape yam in a produce store and bought a few. I like them so i went back anglr a few more ans going to try to see if they grow. They came from south Florida so im hoping they will grow here is south Orlando. It looks alot like what you called lisbon.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому

      Yes, that's a "name" type. Good find.

    • @jeaniedeveau
      @jeaniedeveau 15 днів тому

      @davidthegood should I plant it now? Or wait until after we're away from frost risk. Lowest we've had here is 43 so far. If I put it in ground now can it rot? Or we should be ok?

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  14 днів тому

      @@jeaniedeveau Usually we plant them in Feb/March.

  • @baneverything5580
    @baneverything5580 16 днів тому +1

    David, what do you think about Taro tubers? I`m thinking these will be the easiest for me in central Louisiana until I can develop better soil. My yard was once a hill that was bulldosed down to very hard red dirt but my heavy mulching with chopped leaves, leaf mold and grass clippings and chaos planting of beans, peas, squash, greens and okra has worked and the soil in my test area is nearly 8 inches deep and rich now and life is moving into the surrounding areas. I started with one inch of topsoil.

  • @user-ic2ug8ys1z
    @user-ic2ug8ys1z 16 днів тому +1

    What did you feed that yam? We need to buy Dave a new water hose.
    This is a long video but worth the time. Great information on true yams.
    😀🌱🐢

  • @rogerfranks6705
    @rogerfranks6705 15 днів тому

    Back in the spring, due to my interest in your videos, while walking through Publix I found a “ yellow yam”. I couldn’t wait to get home and plant it. I have very limited space here where I live in Gulf Shores,Al. The vine grew like kudzu all summer basically until we had our first frost which was yesterday December 4 . My vine had thorns all over it and it is planted in very sandy well draining soil my question to you is should I dig or leave in the ground?

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому

      You could dig around it to see how big the root is. We pulled some yellow yams this fall, but left some others to grow bigger. It's a good test.

  • @desamecyra1
    @desamecyra1 14 днів тому

    Gives the phrase" Don't eat your seed potatoes " a whole new meaning...

  • @loquat4440
    @loquat4440 15 днів тому

    Most useful information. The fact that the Chinese yam bulbil berries are edible is a two edged sword here. Means that if I can eat them without cooking and so then can the critters, namely birds, squirrels, raccoons, and possums. I will have to rig up something. Maybe an air soft gun or even an European style of garden gun (they are 9mm rimfire that can fire maybe a 1/4 oz of bird shot at low velocity and noise level.
    D. alata seems to be the best choice for me.
    ECUA (escambia county utility company) sells compost made from collected lawn and tree trash mixed with sewage biosolids at $10 a cubic yard I see. I will look into using those to amend the yams.

  • @feralkevin
    @feralkevin 13 днів тому

    I have heard the Chinese yam is sometimes grown in tubes, something I want to try next year

  • @cantseetheforestforthetree9673
    @cantseetheforestforthetree9673 11 днів тому

    Chinese yam can be grown horizontally by burying a two foot length of gutter, large diameter bamboo split in half, or some similar barrier that can redirect the tuber to grow sideways.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  11 днів тому +1

      Bamboo is a great idea.

    • @cantseetheforestforthetree9673
      @cantseetheforestforthetree9673 10 днів тому

      @ thanks. As you probably know…when you’ve got bamboo growing it inspires a need for the collecting of good ideas on ways of using it, particularly in temperate climates where you can’t really grow the more well behaved clumping types…

  • @admiralsunshine
    @admiralsunshine 16 днів тому

    For those Chinese yams that grow straight down, I might try stacking old tires to the desired height and filling the center with soil. Come harvest time maybe cut the tires in half and pull away?

    • @orionflame2585
      @orionflame2585 15 днів тому +1

      Great idea but its a lot healthier to use cardboard boxes or something organic so that there aren't any toxic chemicals being absorbed in the food or the garden

    • @gordonglasson3930
      @gordonglasson3930 15 днів тому +1

      I'm in the UK and find they grow ok in black plastic dustbins (trash cans) in my greenhouse. They take two/three years to get up to a usable size and you just tip the whole lot out onto a plastic sheet to harvest them.

  • @DDWASH9595
    @DDWASH9595 15 днів тому

    You probably could plant the yam berries or tater tot plant in boxes like they grow burdock root

  • @lacklusterami
    @lacklusterami 15 днів тому

    Can alata overwinter in the ground in zone 8?

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому

      It has here in 8b, so probably 8a as well.

  • @benlabarre8072
    @benlabarre8072 11 днів тому

    Hey David, do you think a morus rubra would be able to fruit in a USDA 9b climate?

  • @Blynn-md4dx
    @Blynn-md4dx 16 днів тому

    Would be interesting to try ube in 7b. Will have to find a supplier (here preferably)

  • @noonespecial5517
    @noonespecial5517 2 дні тому

    Hahahaha!!!!!
    Yeah we don’t talk to our neighbors about our bamboo
    They hate it, we love it. Growing for feed

  • @admiralsunshine
    @admiralsunshine 13 днів тому

    Does anyone know if the bulbils on purple ube are edible when cooked?

  • @austintrees
    @austintrees 16 днів тому +1

    Could they work in 6a?

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  16 днів тому +1

      Dioscorea polystachya can

    • @drewsample9610
      @drewsample9610 15 днів тому +1

      check Interwoven Permaculture for selections of polystachya yams.

  • @exodusfamilybelize
    @exodusfamilybelize 15 днів тому

    I found something called Yampi in the market in Belize, it looks like a purple yam. How would I propagate it?

  • @JustSumGuy
    @JustSumGuy 16 днів тому

    David I pulled up my potted Ube could I replant it like we do sugar cane you think? Zone 8b clay soil.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  16 днів тому

      Yes. You can replant it now. But I wouldn't cut it up and plant it in the cold. Plant it whole, or keep it in a pot until spring, then you can cut it up and plant it.

  • @myrtsimyy
    @myrtsimyy 15 днів тому

    About the difference between an invasive and less invasive varieties: Herbivores.
    Often times deer, moles and other species will learn by smell alone what is not edible and will help bring balance.

  • @TheDiversifiedFarmer
    @TheDiversifiedFarmer 15 днів тому

    Namé might be good in a chickenfood bag and in half sand/half potting mix.

  • @brettkennedy8832
    @brettkennedy8832 15 днів тому

    Hello David love your channel can I grow and be successful in Ohio with yams and if so where can I get them?

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому

      Chinese yams will grow there. My daughter has some bulbils: www.etsy.com/shop/GoodGardens

  • @andrewsturgeon-m1m
    @andrewsturgeon-m1m 16 днів тому

    Where could I get some of these true yams to grow for myself?

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  16 днів тому

      www.etsy.com/shop/goodgardens/?etsrc=sdt

  • @josafar8321
    @josafar8321 14 днів тому

    Hi David! I'm a new enthusiast of yams from Hungary, zone 7b in particular. I've just started building 80-100 cm high raised (hugel-pellet board) beds for our chinese yams (and my wife) with which I was rather satisfied with this year - but I would like to experiment less cold hardy species as well.
    I got ube this year from seed (true seed) and 3-4 plants out of 10 managed to grow some teeny-tiny roots by October when the leaves were actually still up (we were expecting frosts). But I can't find white alatas anywhere. Do you have a suggestion? Do you happen to ship outside the United States, or know someone who does? (Or is it as much red tape to get out of as to get in to the States?)
    (Edit: having red one of the comments, the gutter solution sounds much more practical. I sure will give those a try. Good thing the raised beds were designed in for multiple reasons. :D )

  • @tanyacornell6213
    @tanyacornell6213 15 днів тому

    Hello I purchased some seeds from your daughters Etsy and have sent her a couple of messages with no reply. I’m wanting to find out when should I plant my Chinese yams I purchased from y’all. I’m in central Texas. Waco would be the closest city to us.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  15 днів тому +1

      She gets hundreds of messages, so can't always reach everyone. You could plant them now, or put them in a pot of slightly moist soil where they won't freeze, then they will sprout in the spring and you can transplant them.

    • @tanyacornell6213
      @tanyacornell6213 15 днів тому

      @ thank you sir. I can only imagine. Well I truly appreciate you sir for taking the time to answer what probably seemed like a stupid question lol. This is my first time gardening in a place like central Texas. I spent the first 40 years of my life up north in a much colder climate so I’m having to learn all over again I feel like.

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  14 днів тому +1

      @@tanyacornell6213 Hey, welcome to the South! Glad you didn't give up.

  • @Lola-nj5tc
    @Lola-nj5tc 13 днів тому

    Where does one get what we call “ yam heads” for planting?

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  12 днів тому

      Best is to buy a whole yam in a grocery, then keep the head.

  • @gardenheiress1990
    @gardenheiress1990 16 днів тому

    Anyone know a source for D. pentaphylla?

  • @soniamarshall9293
    @soniamarshall9293 15 днів тому

    Where can i get yam to buy?

  • @ElizabethCoronel-q8u
    @ElizabethCoronel-q8u 15 днів тому

    How is the taste like

  • @themeltingplot
    @themeltingplot 15 днів тому

    The Chinese yam root doesn't have much flavor - sort of a moist dumpling vibe. It's very mucilaginous raw but it fries up nicely.

  • @bowtielife
    @bowtielife 15 днів тому +3

    Holy cow! Your recent harvests have been like something out of a fantasy movie!! 😱😱😱 They just keep getting more and more fantastic!!
    I grew Luffa this year... if it were not an annual it would be invasive but even as an annual it covered a good portion of TWO 1/4 acre properties here in Destin!
    I have been fighting the bad air potato for 3 years. We almost have it under 'control' but inevitably someone hits a potato with a lawn mower that starts 30 more plants in every directions! 🤣😂🤣
    Oh my goodness!! Your conversation about 'beautiful heart shaped leaves' and 'just plant this bulbil at 24:50 was exactly what the former owner of our has did! (He was in his 80s) His girlfriend said, "plant this and you'll never forget me!" Former owner told me, word for word, "Oh, I never forgot her or the swear words that went with her and those blasted vines!!" 🤣🤣🤣

    • @davidthegood
      @davidthegood  14 днів тому +1

      That is really funny.

    • @bowtielife
      @bowtielife 14 днів тому

      @@davidthegood Ah hah hah hah!! Funny but sadly, true! 🤣🤣

  • @melanieallen3655
    @melanieallen3655 15 днів тому

    Im so sad.my local asian market closed down..

  • @colettemorgan4503
    @colettemorgan4503 15 днів тому

    If the soil is soft and draining it will grow, too much wall guarantee rot. Any strong pole will do.

  • @GrandmomZoo
    @GrandmomZoo 16 днів тому

    2016 you were a wee baby. :)

  • @johnliberty3647
    @johnliberty3647 15 днів тому

    I need to dig up my yams. I hope none are that big. I would rather have 8 ten pound yams. I just carried an 80 pound bag of concrete and I think I am too old for things that heavy. Sure my muscles can handle it but the joints are telling me it’s time to wind down. I can’t imagine having to pull 80 pounds out of the ground. I would have halved it … or quartered it in the ground.

  • @anidnmeno
    @anidnmeno 15 днів тому

    yamn

  • @feralkevin
    @feralkevin 13 днів тому

    I titled one of my videos "yamberry" and got almost no views. LOL, maybe tater tot plant is better!

  • @KristinGasser
    @KristinGasser 14 днів тому

    😂… yeah, can’t wait until you present us the macaroni & cheese plant! 😂 a bacon plant would be amazing, too! 😅😁
    Thank‘s for these amazing insights… already looking up, where to find those bulbills here in Europe!
    I recently saw a video where they grew this chinese yam variety with the long root ( we call it „Lichtwurzel“ in german, what means „light root“. They call it the heathiest veggie of the world… 😅 and made a huge expenditure building a special 1,5 m high raised bed with 4 m high trellises that they opened and emtied (is that an existing english word? You know what I mean…) in fall, to harvest the root. This is how they did it and successfully harvested the root without breaking it: ua-cam.com/video/9BzlV6utwZU/v-deo.htmlsi=8lRz5h2gtOL7SWDz
    They haven’t even mentioned that the bulbills are edable… i will tell them about the tater top plant… and show them your video! 😊
    Yes, please write a book about it! Take this as my pre-order! 🙏🏻

  • @magsstewart5488
    @magsstewart5488 16 днів тому

    So air potatoes are bad for humans, I wonder if they could be a feed crop? 🤔

  • @carolynquinones8736
    @carolynquinones8736 15 днів тому

    Is Name a true yam?

  • @sansomspressurecleaningpoo9519
    @sansomspressurecleaningpoo9519 16 днів тому

    I thought that was an air potato plant

  • @desamecyra1
    @desamecyra1 14 днів тому

    Why don't the fire ants eat those grubs?

  • @Fano775
    @Fano775 16 днів тому

    I like you

  • @4evermetalhead79
    @4evermetalhead79 15 днів тому

    I blame David for sleeping at night, dreaming about yams, and first thing that is stuck in my brain when i wake up being “Diascorea alata”.
    And i haven’t had any to grow yet (but will sure do)?!
    Thanks… i guess… 😅

  • @Patrickhenry17seventysix
    @Patrickhenry17seventysix 16 днів тому

    Early

  • @Fano775
    @Fano775 16 днів тому

    Looks sweet potato