Spermatophyta: Gymnospermae: Cycadales

Cycadaceae - Cycad family

Lewis, J. (1960) Cycadaceae (including Zamiaceae) Flora Zambesiaca 1(1)

Description of the family

Trees. Trunk tall or very short, bearing spirally arranged leaf-bases and scale leaves. Leaves closely spirally arranged, pinnate; leaflets with one thick midrib and no lateral veins, entire. Male scales arranged in apical cones, each scale with many pollen-sacs on the abaxial surface. Female scales frond-like, lanceolate or narrowly ovate, irregularly dentate, not forming a definite cone but spirally arranged in an apical whorl. Seeds ovoid.

May be distinguished from the Zamiaceae by the presence of a midrib in the leaflets and by the female inflorescence which is much-branched and not cone-like. The Stangeriaceae leaflets also have a midrib, but they differ in the presence of lateral veins.

Worldwide: 1 genus and 17 species extending from Africa to Japan and Australia

Zimbabwe: 1 cultivated genus and 4 cultivated taxa.

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Links to cultivated genera:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this family

GenusContent
Cycas L.Description

Other sources of information about Cycadaceae:

Our websites:

Flora of Mozambique: Cycadaceae

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Cycadaceae
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Cycadaceae
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Cycadaceae
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Cycadaceae
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Cycadaceae
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Cycadaceae
JSTOR Plant Science: Cycadaceae
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Cycadaceae
Wikipedia: Cycadaceae
Plants of the World Online: Cycadaceae
Tropicos: Cycadaceae



Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2002-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Zimbabwe: Cultivated plants: Family page: Cycadaceae.
https://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/cult/family.php?family_id=281, retrieved 14 December 2024

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