Are you looking for an unusual plant for your garden or sun porch? Growing cycads is easy, and these unusual plants are spectacular and will impress all your friends. The evergreen plants look like exotic, stunted palm trees but are really primitive survivors of greenery that was around with the dinosaurs.
These plants often look like a stunted palm tree, and in fact the cycad is most closely related to the palm although not of the same family. The woody stem can be three to ten feet tall, although in very dry areas it may be entirely underground. The rosette of leaves, which usually looks like a shaggy crown above the thick trunk, will then be flat on the ground. The female plants produce large, colorful seeds in cones. The males also have cones, but these produce pollen. Their natural pollinators are beetles.
Scientists think there were hundreds of species of these primitive evergreens which are now extinct. However, several hundred species are still found in warm, dry regions in Australia, Africa, Mexico, Central America, China, Japan, and arid islands around the oceans. Some look more like tree ferns than palms.
In its native lands, it's a hardy evergreen. It prefers dry, rocky soil because it must have complete drainage. Its tuberous roots rot quickly in saturated soil. It will do well in a terra cotta pot, but it doesn't like to dry out completely; the soil should be kept moist but never water-logged. A potted plant will not have to be moved to a larger pot very often, since the plants seem to prefer being root-bound.
In the garden, these hardy plants like twice a week watering in summer. In winter, they need little extra attention. They require light fertilizing four times a year to flourish. Look for a special palm food that contains phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium.
Several species of cycad have blue leaves. This is because the plants produce a waxy coating which slows evaporation through the leaves in periods of drought. Even these 'blue' species turn green in humid conditions or in greenhouses, since the plants no longer need to produce the wax. If you can give them low humidity, you can enjoy carious shades from silvery-white to deeper blue.
In the house, plan their place to have lots of natural light. They should not be near a source of heat but in a well-ventilated, low humidity room or enclosed porch. They like the temperature to be around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Outside, they like full sun and will be perennials in tropical or sub-tropical gardens.
If you want an attention-getting focal point for your garden or an exotic presence in your house, try one of the many cycads. Look for the blues in catalogs or online if you can give them a dry environment. If they are growing in the right conditions, these plants are easy to care for, long-lived, and interesting to have around.
These plants often look like a stunted palm tree, and in fact the cycad is most closely related to the palm although not of the same family. The woody stem can be three to ten feet tall, although in very dry areas it may be entirely underground. The rosette of leaves, which usually looks like a shaggy crown above the thick trunk, will then be flat on the ground. The female plants produce large, colorful seeds in cones. The males also have cones, but these produce pollen. Their natural pollinators are beetles.
Scientists think there were hundreds of species of these primitive evergreens which are now extinct. However, several hundred species are still found in warm, dry regions in Australia, Africa, Mexico, Central America, China, Japan, and arid islands around the oceans. Some look more like tree ferns than palms.
In its native lands, it's a hardy evergreen. It prefers dry, rocky soil because it must have complete drainage. Its tuberous roots rot quickly in saturated soil. It will do well in a terra cotta pot, but it doesn't like to dry out completely; the soil should be kept moist but never water-logged. A potted plant will not have to be moved to a larger pot very often, since the plants seem to prefer being root-bound.
In the garden, these hardy plants like twice a week watering in summer. In winter, they need little extra attention. They require light fertilizing four times a year to flourish. Look for a special palm food that contains phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium.
Several species of cycad have blue leaves. This is because the plants produce a waxy coating which slows evaporation through the leaves in periods of drought. Even these 'blue' species turn green in humid conditions or in greenhouses, since the plants no longer need to produce the wax. If you can give them low humidity, you can enjoy carious shades from silvery-white to deeper blue.
In the house, plan their place to have lots of natural light. They should not be near a source of heat but in a well-ventilated, low humidity room or enclosed porch. They like the temperature to be around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Outside, they like full sun and will be perennials in tropical or sub-tropical gardens.
If you want an attention-getting focal point for your garden or an exotic presence in your house, try one of the many cycads. Look for the blues in catalogs or online if you can give them a dry environment. If they are growing in the right conditions, these plants are easy to care for, long-lived, and interesting to have around.
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