Cycad - Zamia

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This little cycad, a zamia, was just labeled as a "houseplant" at my local Lowe's here in Glendale, Arizona. The most common zamia is a "cardboard palm" (Zamia furfuracea), which is considerably larger (you can see a bit of one on the right). Small, fine-leaf zamias are variable in appearance. Some people call them "coonties". I just call these "little zamias". These little gems grow beautifully here in the Phoenix area, but you rarely seem for sale here. They will show up occasionally at a Lowe's or Home Depot if a shipment is meant to go to California, or in this case, where it is just being sold as a houseplant.

They are not expensive, being the same price as a sago palm (cycas revoluta), and that's because most nurseries can't tell the difference between these two types of plants. But there is a considerable difference! A zamia like this will grow low, bushy and full. A revoluta will grow like, well, a palm tree. There's a place for both in Tropical Paradise!

By the way, the plant directly to the right, and slightly behind, the little zamia is a dragon tree (dracaena), which was also sold as a houseplant as just "tropical foliage". The cycad behind it is a Dioon spinulosum. This is a shady area next to an east-facing wall of my house and under an olive tree. The tree provides shade in the summer and frost protection in the winter. Yes, it can get cold in January here, I've seen it down in the teens. I don't ever go out and cover my plants. They have adapted, and they huddle together for warmth and humidity. So give your tropical plants lots of friends!

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