Cycad

Cycad, common name for a phylum of slow-growing palmlike plants, and for its representative genus. Today only 11 genera and 150 species of cycads occur, but during the Age of the Dinosaurs, the Jurassic Period, some 200 million years ago, they were the dominant plant life. Cycads are primitive gymnosperms (“naked seed” plants) with motile sperm cells, producing exposed seeds in conelike clusters at the apex of the plants. They occur in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate areas. Most are good-size plants of unbranched columnar stems with frondlike leaves clustered at the tip. The only species that occurs in the United States is found in the sandy woods of Florida. This and other species are a source of sago to make bread and other starchy foods. Cycads are evergreens with attractive foliage, and plants of all genera are cultivated for their horticultural value. They are grown out-of-doors in warm areas and as houseplants in colder regions. One species, the Sago Cycas, is a popular bonsai subject. Most cycads are in danger of extinction because of indiscriminate collectors.

Scientific classification: Cycads constitute the phylum Cycadophyta. The representative genus is Cycas of the family Cycadaceae. The species found in the United States is classified as Zamia pumila and the popular bonsai species as Lycas revoluta.

See also Gymnosperm.