Zamias are members of the Cycad family which have been flourishing on earth since the time of the dinosaurs! This is a great evergreen plant native to Florida and the Bahamas. It has a nice, soft, fern-like look. It stays under 3' in height & makes a low mound a little wider than it is tall. Florida's original inhabitants (before the European invasion) used to process the thick roots into an edible starch that they used like bread flour.
They are drought-tolerant and will grow in sun or shade. They are hardy to Zone 8. They also serve as a larval food plant for the Atala butterfly. The seed cones split open in late winter to reveal the spectacular bright orange seeds.
Here you can see a mature cone splitting open to reveal the seeds. To the upper left of this photo is a brown immature cone ready to be fertilized by pollen floating on the breezes.
2 comments:
Hi Jim...I had noticed that these plants survived the freezing weather. Thanks for the great info. on them. I will definitely be adding some to my garden this spring.
I love coonties! I have a single specimen that my mom passed along a couple years ago. She has grown them in her garden for years. Great tough plant for Florida (and a native)!
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