wild potato

American  

noun

1. a plant, Solanum jamesii, of the southwestern U.S., related to the edible cultivated potato.

2. man-of-the-earth.

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Etymology

Origin of wild potato

An Americanism dating back to 1765–75

Example Sentences

The effort on wild potatoes, which wraps up this month, has yielded a collection representing 39 species from six nations: Peru, Brazil, Ecuador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Chile.

From Science Magazine

Every year Bamburg and other researchers scour the sites where wild potatoes grow in the Western Hemisphere.

From Washington Times

Krakauer suggests in his book that he was poisoned by a toxic alkaloid on wild potato seeds that he ate.

From The New Yorker

We had lunch along the creek—stewed mussels and wild potatoes.

From Literature

McCandless kept journals and photographs of his quest, up to his last few hours when he knew that he would die of poisoning from seeds of a wild potato plant.

From Washington Times