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?Cycas revoluta
Conservation status: Near threatened

Leaves and male cone of Cycas revoluta
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Cycadophyta
Class: Cycadopsida
Order: Cycadales
Family: Cycadaceae
Genus: Cycas
Species: C. revoluta
Binomial name
Cycas revoluta
Thunb.

Cycas revoluta (Sago Cycad), is a cycad native to southern Japan. Though often known by the common name of King Sago Palm, or just Sago Palm, it is not a palm at all, but a type of gymnosperm.

This very symmetrical plant supports a crown of shiny, dark green leaves on a thick shaggy trunk that is typically about 20 cm in diameter, sometimes wider. The trunk is very low to subterranean in young plants, but lengthens above ground with age. It can grow into very old specimens with 6–7 m of trunk, however, the plant is very slow-growing and requires about 50–100 years to achieve this height. Trunks can branch multiple times, thus producing multiple heads of leaves.

Cycas revoluta

The leaves are a deep semiglossy green and about 50–150 cm long when the plants are of a reproductive age. They grow out into a feather-like rosette to 1 m in diameter. The crowded, stiff, narrow leaflets are 8–18 cm long and have strongly recurved or revolute edges. The basal leaflets become more like spines. The petiole or stems of the Sago Cycad are 6–10 cm long and have small protective barbs that must be avoided.

Propagation of Cycas revoluta is either by seed or by removal of basal offsets. As with other cycads, it is dioecious, with the males bearing cones and the females bearing groups of megasporophylls . Pollination can be done naturally by insects or artificially.

Cultivation and uses

Cycas revoluta is one of the most widely cultivated cycads, grown outdoors in warm temperate and subtropical regions, or under glass in colder areas. It grows best in sandy, well-drained soil, preferably with some organic matter. It needs good drainage or it will rot. It is fairly drought-tolerant and grows well in full sun or outdoor shade, but needs bright light when grown indoors. The leaves can bleach somewhat if moved from indoors to full sun outdoors.

The pith is very rich in edible starch, and is used for making sago. Before use, the starch must be carefully washed to leach out toxins contained in the pith.

Of all the cycads, the Sago Palm is the most popular in horticulture. It is seen in almost all botanical gardens, in both temperate and tropical locations. In many areas of the world, it is heavily promoted commercially as a landscape plant. It is also quite popular as a bonsai plant. First discovered in the late 1700s, it is native to various areas of southern Japan and is thus tolerant of mild to somewhat cold temperatures, provided the ground is dry. Frond damage can occur at temperatures below −5 °C. It does however require hot summers with mean temperatures of 30 to 35 °C for successful growth, making outdoor growing impossible in colder places such as northern Europe, even where winter temperatures are not too cold.

References

  • Hill (2003). Cycas revoluta. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006.
  • The Cycad Pages: Cycas revoluta
  • University of Arizona Pima County Cooperative Extension: Sago Palm
  • The Sago Palm, Cycas revoluta by Phil Bergman

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Cycas revoluta
Search Term: "Cycas_revoluta"

sago palm news and sago palm articles

Here's our top rated sago palm links for the day:

Sago palms under deadly insect attack 

High Plains Journal - Mar 15 11:24 PM
One of the Lower Rio Grande Valley's most popular landscape plants is under severe insect attack, and the prognosis is not good, according to an expert with Texas Cooperative Extension.
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Best Of 
East Bay Express - Mar 16 12:17 PM
Buyer Beware at Stereo Unlimited. I... West African food can be a hard sell in the United States, what with its creamy starches, rich palm oil, and devilish spicing.
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Daytona Beach offers plenty for culture vultures 
Shelbyville Daily Union - Mar 16 10:26 AM
By Dave Zuchowski NEW CASTLE NEWS (NEW CASTLE, Pa.) MEADVILLE, Pa. Looking for a diversion after playing long and hard on Daytonas sunny beaches? If ya gotta have art, theres plenty of area attractions to tap into.
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Nw Gardens: Opening up to the outdoors 
Seattle Post-Intelligencer - Mar 09 3:27 PM
Master Gardener Marty Wingate finds answers about how to incorporate some of the diverse outdoor living ideas seen at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show in your own space.
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Pet poison center provides 24-hour help in emergencies 
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Mar 07 9:19 PM
Read this article ]
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Plant sago palm in large pot, with a lot of light 
The Argus Leader - Feb 27 12:01 AM
You can plant the palms in ordinary greenhouse soil that's a combination of peat moss, perlite and soil. They need excellent drainage so they never stand in water, not even water in the saucer.
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GARDEN Q and A: How to keep hydrangeas a beautiful blue 
The Florida Times-Union - Feb 24 3:26 AM
Q: How can I keep the "blue" in my hydrangeas? What about fertilizing them?
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Obituaries 
Independent - Feb 20 8:56 PM
Irene F. Bingold Casey Mrs. Casey, 65, of Keansburg, died Feb. 16, 2007, at Bayshore Community Hospital, Holmdel. Born in New York City, she resided in Newark and the Lawrence Harbor section of Old Bridge, prior to relocating to Keansburg 22 years sago. She was a matron at Old Bridge Board of Education. She was predeceased by a brother, John Bingold.
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Last Update: 2007-03-20 11:19:38

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