Sunday 27 January 2008

Cycas Rumphii - A Real Sexy Cycad


I was lucky enough to find two mature samples of this guy on a German website (about 2 feet of trunk) which I instantly bought :D

I have been growing cycads from seed for a good while now, but the common Cycas Revoluta is the only one we seem to be able to find of any credible size in the UK.

Anyway, back to Rumphii. As soon as I put these guys in the sun their leaves browned off. I suppose they were reared in a hothouse rather than under proper sunlight. Only one of them looked really tatty so I chopped all it's leaves off and bunged it into the greenhouse.

It is now bulging up in the middle and ready to spring forth new leaves... hopefully 14 or more... we'll see I guess.

The Rumphii should be able to take full sun, but it does like it's air moisture, so placement on the edge of water (though not in it) would probably make it happy. I would never leave these guys outside in Winter, though apparently they are supposed to be trunk hardy to some degree.

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