Sweet potato (scientific name: Ipomoea batatas) is also known as batata, yams, red sweet potato, and other names such as yam bean, sweet yam, and red taro. (Note: Calling it "sweet yam" or "sweet potato" may cause confusion with yams in the Dioscorea genus.) It is a common perennial dicotyledonous plant in the Convolvulaceae family, characterized by its elongated vines and creeping stems that grow along the ground.