Tubers are swollen, fleshy underground storage organs formed from modified stems or roots that accumulate reserves of starch, sugars, and other nutrients to sustain the plant through periods of dormancy and fuel the rapid resumption of growth when favorable conditions return. Unlike bulbs, which are composed of modified leaves, or rhizomes, which are elongated horizontal stems, tubers are generally compact, rounded or irregular in shape, and lack the distinct basal plate and papery tunic that characterize true bulbs. This relatively simple structure belies the extraordinary diversity of plants that have independently evolved tubers as a survival and storage strategy across many different plant families.
The economic importance of tuberous plants to human civilization is difficult to overstate. The potato, perhaps the world’s most important tuberous food crop, is the fourth largest food crop globally after wheat, rice, and maize, with world production exceeding 370 million tonnes annually and the crop feeding billions of people across every inhabited continent. The role of the potato tuber in human history has been literally civilization-changing, with its introduction to Europe contributing to population growth and the ability of societies to support the industrialization that transformed the modern world, while the failure of the Irish potato crop through disease in the 1840s caused one of the most devastating famines in European history.
Beyond the potato, tuberous plants provide some of the world’s most important food crops, including cassava, the primary calorie source for over 800 million people in tropical Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and the sweet potato, which ranks among the ten most important food crops worldwide. The global cassava market alone is valued at tens of billions of dollars annually, reflecting the crop’s fundamental role in food security across multiple continents. Yams, Jerusalem artichokes, and other tuberous food plants add further to the immense contribution of tuber-bearing plants to global food production.
In horticulture and ornamental gardening, tuberous plants include some of the most spectacular and widely cultivated flowering plants available, including dahlias, begonias, and anemones, alongside less familiar but equally beautiful species. The global dahlia industry alone produces hundreds of millions of tubers annually, with thousands of named cultivars available in virtually every flower form and color combination imaginable. The ease of storage and transportation that dormant tubers allow has contributed significantly to the global spread of ornamental tuberous plants across gardening traditions worldwide.
From the humble potato to the spectacular dahlia, from the ancient cassava to the delicate cyclamen, the following 30 plants illustrate the extraordinary versatility and importance of the tuber as a plant structure across both wild and cultivated environments.
Also: Plants That Grow From Rhizomes
Flowering Plants Grown From Tubers
Potato
The potato is the world’s most widely grown tuberous food crop and one of the most important food plants in human history, producing its familiar starchy tubers as modified underground stems that swell with stored nutrients during the growing season. Global potato production exceeds 370 million tonnes annually.
Potato tubers are planted in spring and develop into leafy plants that produce new tubers underground during summer, with the tubers being harvested in late summer or autumn when the above-ground foliage begins to die back. The extraordinary diversity of potato varieties, encompassing thousands of named cultivars differing in skin color, flesh color, flavor, and culinary properties, reflects centuries of selection and breeding.
Dahlia
Dahlia produces some of the most spectacular flowers available in the garden, with thousands of named cultivars in virtually every flower form from simple single blooms to densely petalled ball and cactus types, all growing from fleshy tuberous roots that store nutrients through the winter dormancy period. The global dahlia tuber industry produces hundreds of millions of units annually.
Dahlia tubers are planted in spring after the last frost risk has passed, developing into plants that flower prolifically from midsummer until the first autumn frost, when the foliage blackens and the tubers must be lifted and stored frost-free through winter in cooler climates. Each tuber clump grows larger each season, producing additional tubers that can be divided to create new plants.
Sweet Potato
The sweet potato is one of the world’s most important food crops, producing large, nutritious tubers in shades of orange, white, yellow, and purple that are staple foods across tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. China produces approximately 57% of the global sweet potato harvest.
Sweet potato tubers are planted by inserting slips, which are shoots grown from the previous season’s tubers, into warm soil in spring, developing into trailing plants that produce their tubers underground during the growing season. Beyond their food value, sweet potatoes with ornamental foliage in bronze or chartreuse tones have become popular as ornamental container plants.
Cassava
Cassava is a tropical tuberous plant whose large, starchy roots are the primary calorie source for over 800 million people across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, making it one of the most important food security crops in the developing world. Africa accounts for approximately 60% of global cassava production.
The woody stems of cassava are used as planting material rather than the tubers themselves, with sections of stem inserted into the ground to develop new plants and produce tubers within eight to twelve months. Cassava’s tolerance for poor soils, drought, and challenging growing conditions makes it an invaluable crop in regions where other staple crops would fail.
Yam
True yams, belonging to the genus Dioscorea, are large tuberous plants widely grown across tropical Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean for their starchy, nutritious tubers that can reach impressive sizes. West Africa produces approximately 95% of the world’s yam crop.
Yam tubers are planted as whole small tubers or pieces of larger tubers and develop into climbing vines that produce increasingly large tubers underground over the growing season. The cultural significance of yams in West African societies extends well beyond their food value, with yam festivals and ceremonies reflecting the crop’s central importance in many traditional cultures.
Also Read: Plants That Grow Easily From Cuttings
Jerusalem Artichoke
Jerusalem artichoke, despite its name having no connection to either Jerusalem or artichokes, produces small, knobby tubers with a pleasant, slightly sweet, nutty flavor that has made them popular as a winter vegetable in recent decades. The plant is actually related to sunflowers and native to North America.
These tubers are exceptionally productive, with a single planted tuber capable of producing a large number of offspring tubers in a single growing season, and the plants spread vigorously if all tubers are not harvested at the end of each season. Jerusalem artichokes are among the easiest vegetables to grow, requiring minimal care once planted and tolerating poor soils and partial shade.
Cyclamen
Cyclamen grows from flattened, disc-shaped tubers that expand in size over many years, producing delicate, reflexed flowers in shades of pink, red, purple, and white above attractively marbled foliage during their winter and spring flowering season. The tubers of established cyclamen plants can grow to considerable size over decades.
Hardy cyclamen species naturalize beautifully under trees and in other shaded positions, with the tubers becoming increasingly productive over time as they grow larger and develop the resources to support more flowers each season. Cyclamen tubers should be planted shallowly with the flat top of the tuber at or near the soil surface.
Begonia
Tuberous begonias grow from flat, disc-shaped tubers similar in appearance to those of cyclamen, producing spectacular flowers in an enormous range of colors and forms from summer until the first autumn frost. The tubers are started indoors in late winter or spring before being moved outdoors after frost risk passes.
The impressive flower display of tuberous begonias, combined with their ability to perform well in shaded and partially shaded positions, makes them invaluable for containers and hanging baskets in areas that receive limited direct sunlight. Tubers grow slightly larger each year if properly cared for and stored correctly through winter dormancy.
Anemone
Several important garden anemone species grow from small, dried, irregularly shaped tubers that may look completely dead and unremarkable but will produce attractive flowers when planted correctly. The tubers are typically soaked in water for several hours before planting to rehydrate them.
Anemone blanda produces carpet-like drifts of daisy-like flowers in blue, pink, and white in early spring, while the larger Anemone coronaria, the poppy anemone, produces bold, cup-shaped flowers in vivid reds, purples, pinks, and whites that are popular as cut flowers. Both species grow from the same type of small, irregular tubers.
Caladium
Caladium is grown primarily for its spectacular, large, paper-thin leaves in dramatic combinations of white, pink, red, and green, growing from rounded tubers planted in spring in warm, humid conditions. The extraordinary foliage makes caladium one of the most visually dramatic of all tuberous plants.
Caladium tubers are started indoors in late winter in cooler climates, with the plants moved outdoors to shaded positions after all frost risk has passed. The tubers must be lifted and stored warm and dry through winter in climates with any frost, as caladiums are highly sensitive to cold.
Also Read: Plants that Grow From Corms
Oxalis
While some oxalis species grow from corms or rhizomes, others grow from small tubers, with the wood sorrel family showing considerable diversity in its underground storage organ structure. Tuberous oxalis species produce attractive clover-like foliage and cup-shaped flowers in various colors.
Several tuberous oxalis species have become popular ornamental plants for containers and garden borders, appreciated for their attractive foliage and flowers as well as the ease with which the small tubers can be stored and replanted each season. Care must be taken with certain tuberous oxalis species that can become invasive in mild climates.
Clivia
Clivia grows from fleshy, tuberous roots that form an extensive system supporting the plant’s large, strap-like evergreen leaves and spectacular clusters of orange, yellow, or red flowers. These South African plants are popular houseplants in cooler climates and garden plants in frost-free regions.
The tuberous root system of clivia stores significant resources that allow the plant to tolerate extended periods of neglect, making it one of the more forgiving of all tuberous plants for indoor cultivation. Clivia flowers most prolifically when the roots become pot-bound, so the plant benefits from being left in the same container for several years.
Ranunculus
Persian ranunculus produces spectacular, rose-like flowers with multiple layers of delicate petals in a wide range of vivid colors, growing from small, claw-shaped tubers that are planted in autumn for spring flowering or in spring for summer flowering depending on the climate. The tubers are planted with the claws pointing downward.
The extraordinary flower quality of ranunculus has made it a significant player in the cut flower industry, with professional growers producing large quantities of these flowers for florists and event decorators worldwide. The tubers multiply over time, with each plant producing several additional tubers by the end of the growing season.
Also Read: How to Grow Snowdrops From Bulbs
Trout Lily
The trout lily is a North American woodland wildflower that grows from small, deep-set tubers, producing distinctive mottled leaves that resemble the markings of a brown trout and nodding yellow or white flowers in early spring. Its unusual leaf markings give the plant its evocative common name.
Trout lily tubers establish slowly and the plants may take several years to begin flowering after being planted or transplanted, but once established they spread gradually to form attractive colonies in shaded woodland garden settings. The deep position of the tubers in the soil helps protect them from freezing temperatures during winter.
Eranthis
Winter aconite, though sometimes described as a corm, is more accurately described as producing a small, irregular tuber that drives the production of some of the earliest flowers of the gardening year, with bright yellow, buttercup-like blooms surrounded by a ruff of deeply cut leaves appearing as early as January or February.
Winter aconite tubers are notoriously difficult to establish from dry-stored tubers, often failing to root successfully if the tubers have become too desiccated before planting. The most reliable way to establish winter aconite is to purchase plants in active growth during the flowering period and transplant them immediately.
Corydalis
Several corydalis species grow from rounded tubers, producing delicate, finely divided foliage and small but charming flowers in yellow, blue, purple, or white in spring. The hollow-rooted corydalis, Corydalis cava, produces hollow tubers that are among the more unusual underground structures in the plant world.
Corydalis tubers increase slowly in size over time and the plants can be divided by carefully separating attached tubers from the main clump. Several tuberous corydalis species naturalize effectively in shaded positions beneath deciduous trees, where they complete their growth cycle before the tree canopy develops fully.
Also Read: Plants That Grow From Bulbs
Camassia
Camassia grows from rounded bulbs that are sometimes classified as tubers in certain systems due to their solid internal structure, producing tall spikes of star-shaped blue, purple, or white flowers in late spring. The tubers were an important food source for Native American communities across the Pacific Northwest.
Camassia tubers are planted in autumn for spring flowering, performing best in positions with consistently moist soil that doesn’t dry out during the growing season. The blue-flowered species are particularly valued for filling the gap between the early spring bulbs and the summer flowering perennials.
Gloriosa Lily
The gloriosa lily grows from distinctive V-shaped or finger-shaped tubers, producing spectacular, reflexed flowers with dramatically swept-back petals in vivid combinations of red and yellow on climbing, tendril-bearing stems. This South African native has become an important cut flower crop worldwide.
Gloriosa tubers are planted in spring in warm, well-drained soil in full sun, with the resulting climbing plants requiring support as they grow. All parts of gloriosa are highly toxic, and care should be taken when handling the tubers to avoid contact with skin and to wash hands thoroughly after handling.
Lathyrus tuberosus
Lathyrus tuberosus, the tuberous sweet pea or earth chestnut, is a European wildflower that grows from small, edible tubers, producing climbing stems bearing intensely fragrant, rosy-pink flowers similar to those of the familiar sweet pea but smaller and with a richer fragrance. The tubers were historically eaten as a food in parts of Europe.
This charming climbing plant is rarely cultivated in modern gardens despite its attractive flowers and excellent fragrance, remaining more of a botanical curiosity than a mainstream garden plant. Its small tubers can be planted in spring to produce flowering climbers that will twine through supporting shrubs or trellises.
Pleione
Pleione is a genus of small orchids, sometimes called windowsill orchids due to their suitability for cool indoor cultivation, that grow from small, rounded pseudobulbs technically categorized as tubers. They produce disproportionately large, exotic-looking flowers relative to the small size of the tuber.
Pleione tubers are planted in shallow containers of bark-based orchid compost in late winter or early spring, with the flowers appearing on short stems before or alongside the developing leaves. After flowering and leaf development, the tubers enter dormancy in winter and should be kept cool and dry until the following spring.
Erythronium
Erythronium, commonly known as dog’s tooth violet due to the shape of its tuber, produces elegantly nodding, reflexed flowers in shades of yellow, white, pink, and purple above attractively mottled leaves in spring. The tooth-shaped tubers are planted in autumn for spring flowering.
Erythronium tubers must not be allowed to dry out between lifting and replanting, as they have very little protective coating and dehydrate quickly, significantly reducing their ability to establish successfully. Purchasing erythroniums in the green, meaning as growing plants in spring, or selecting freshly lifted tubers from a reputable supplier is the most reliable approach.
Tropaeolum tuberosum
Tropaeolum tuberosum is a South American relative of the familiar garden nasturtium that grows from distinctive black and yellow striped tubers, producing climbing stems with lobed leaves and small orange and red flowers. The tubers are an important food crop in the Andean regions of South America.
In cooler climates the tubers are planted in spring after frost risk has passed and must be lifted in autumn before the first frost, as they have limited cold tolerance. The tubers have a sharp, peppery flavor and can be eaten roasted, boiled, or prepared in various traditional Andean ways.
Arisaema
Arisaema, including the dramatic cobra lily and Jack-in-the-pulpit, grows from rounded or flattened corm-like tubers and produces some of the most architecturally striking flowers in the plant world, with elaborate hood-like spathes in dramatic colors and patterns surrounding the central spadix. These unusual plants have become increasingly popular with specialist collectors.
Arisaema tubers increase in size over time and the plants can be propagated by carefully removing offsets that develop around the main tuber. The distinctive, often dramatically striped or spotted spathes of arisaema species make them conversation pieces in shaded garden positions where their architectural forms can be fully appreciated.
Haemanthus
Haemanthus, the blood lily, grows from rounded bulbs that have sufficient solid internal tissue to be classified as tubers in some systems, producing dramatic, rounded flower heads composed of many small flowers in shades of red, white, or pink. These South African natives are popular houseplants.
The tubers of haemanthus are long-lived and develop into increasingly impressive plants over many years, with the flower heads becoming larger and more impressive as the plant matures. Haemanthus prefers to be slightly pot-bound and dislikes frequent repotting or disturbance of its root system.
Pinellia
Pinellia is a tuberous plant related to arisaema, producing small, arum-like flowers on slender stems above divided leaves and spreading through the garden by means of tiny bulbils produced along the stems and at the base of the leaves. The small, rounded tubers can be planted in shaded positions.
This plant can spread more vigorously than expected due to its production of numerous small bulbils in addition to the growth of the main tuber, requiring some management to prevent it from becoming too widespread in a garden setting. Pinellia has a long history of use in traditional Chinese medicine.
Oxalis tetraphylla
Oxalis tetraphylla, the lucky clover or four-leaf sorrel, grows from a distinctive rounded tuber and produces the unusually four-leafed clover foliage and pink to red funnel-shaped flowers that have made it popular as both a garden plant and a houseplant. Its four-leafed form has associations with good luck.
The tubers of Oxalis tetraphylla multiply readily, producing clusters of offset tubers that can be separated to create additional plants. This species is more tender than some other ornamental oxalis and benefits from being lifted and stored frost-free through winter in cooler climates.
Sauromatum
Sauromatum venosum, the voodoo lily, grows from a large, rounded tuber that has the unusual ability to produce its dramatic, arum-like spathe flower without any soil or water, simply placed on a windowsill, before being planted to grow the subsequent leaves. This self-flowering ability has made it a botanical curiosity.
After its curious unplanted flowering, the tuber can be planted in moist, well-drained soil in a shaded position where it will produce its large, deeply divided leaves and then repeat the flowering cycle the following season. The flowers emit a strong smell intended to attract fly pollinators, which is worth bearing in mind when selecting a planting position.
Sisyrinchium
While many sisyrinchium species grow from fibrous roots, certain species produce small, corm-like tubers and provide valuable small-scale plants for rock gardens and the fronts of borders, producing small iris-like flowers in blue, purple, yellow, or white in spring and early summer. Their grass-like foliage is attractive even when not in flower.
The small tubers of tuberous sisyrinchium species can be planted in well-drained, sunny positions where they multiply slowly over time to form neat clumps. These plants are particularly suitable for rock gardens and raised beds where their relatively modest size and delicate flowers can be appreciated at close range.