(Zedoary)

A member of the ginger family, Curcuma comprises approximately 40 to 80 different species—all of tropical or subtropical origin. These are distributed from India to China and Indonesia with a few home to northern Australia.

The flowers of these commonly rhizomatous perennials are distinguished by columns of showy bracts that subtend tubular flowers. These are attractive to birds and butterflies. Many cultivated species are grown as ornamentals, like the rose-pink bracted Siam...

(Ginger)

A member of the ginger family, Curcuma comprises approximately 40 to 80 different species—all of tropical or subtropical origin. These are distributed from India to China and Indonesia with a few home to northern Australia.

The flowers of these commonly rhizomatous perennials are distinguished by columns of showy bracts that subtend tubular flowers. These are attractive to birds and butterflies. Many cultivated species are grown as ornamentals, like the rose-pink bracted Siam...

(Candy Cane Curcuma, Ginger)

A member of the ginger family, Curcuma comprises approximately 40 to 80 different species—all of tropical or subtropical origin. These are distributed from India to China and Indonesia with a few home to northern Australia.

The flowers of these commonly rhizomatous perennials are distinguished by columns of showy bracts that subtend tubular flowers. These are attractive to birds and butterflies. Many cultivated species are grown as ornamentals, like the rose-pink bracted Siam...

(Australian Tree Fern, Australian Treefern, Rough Treefern)

Rough tree fern is a luscious, prehistoric-plant with magnificent large green fronds with an unusual tolerance of salt spray and drier soil. This native of the mountain slopes of eastern Australia and nearby Norfolk Islands loves moist friable soils and look its best with high humidity, ample rainfall and avoidance of dry winds. Large fronds are a beautiful medium green above and light green underneath. This tree fern has a comparatively thick "trunk" which is actually an above-ground rhizome from...

(Australian Treefern, Cooper's Treefern, Lacy Treefern, Queensland Treefern)

Cooper's tree fern is a luscious, prehistoric-looking plant with magnificent large green fronds. This native of the coastal lowlands of eastern Australia loves moist friable soils and look its finest with high humidity and protection from cold or dry winds. The amazingly large, triangular-shaped fronds are a beautiful light to medium green and can reach great lengths. Typically tree ferns grown outside of their native ranges have leaves that rarely reach any length beyond 8 ft/2.5 m., often much...

(Australian Cycas, Mount Surprise Cycad, Mount Surprise Sago)

Feathery, steel-blue leaves make the rare Mount Surprise cycad a plant lover's dream. Native to northeastern Queensland, Australia, where it is endangered, this cone-bearing evergreen grows slowly with a short stem (caudex) that looks like a trunk. Cycads are primitive, non-flowering plants closely related to conifers.

New fronds emerge from the tip of the caudex in late spring. When they first emerge, they are soft and pale blue, but as they age their texture becomes pliable and plastic-like...

(Cycad, Queen Sago)

The queen sago is a lovely slow-growing cycad. This clump-forming evergreen is native to southeastern India and develops a tree-like appearance over time. Its very long leaves (fronds) are dark glossy green and feathery with individual leaflets that droop and curve slightly. The fronds are densely clustered and toothed on the lower part of the leaf stem. Fronds radiate from a central point at the top of a woody trunk-like stem. Newly emerging fronds are very soft, fuzzy and light green and tan. Plants...

(Cycad, Debao Fern Cycad, Multipinnate Cycad)

One glance at Debao fern cycad and you'll think it's a short-stemmed tree fern rather than a cycad, but don't be fooled. This rare cycad was recently discovered by botanists in 1996 in the Yunnan and Guangxi Provinces of China. It is a cone-bearing evergreen plant that grows in sunny, rocky openings among highland forests.

This cycad grows from an underground stem (caudex) with only a small portion extending above the soil. From the tip of the caudex emerges the highly ornate fronds. Each...

(King Sago, Sago Palm)

Sago palm is not a true palm but a cycad. This cone-bearing, clump-forming evergreen is a southern Japanese native and develops a tree-like appearance over time. Its long leaves are dark, glossy green and feathery in appearance but stiff and prickly to the touch. They are densely clustered and radiate from a central point at the top of the woody trunk-like stems.

Cycads are dioecious, meaning plants bear either male or female cone flowering structures. Male plants produce fuzzy, gold-brown...

(Ceylon Sago, Cycad)

The Ceylon sago is a slow-growing cycad that reaches tree-like proportions. This evergreen plant is cone-bearing and closely related to conifers. It is native to the Spice Islands, much of Indonesia and New Guinea. In the wild and in cultivation it is often confused with the visually similar Cycas circinalis.

Ceylon sago has very long leaves (fronds) that are dark glossy green and feathery. They are densely clustered, ending in a leaflet pair at the tip, and lack teeth on the lower...