Encephalartos longifolius
Encyclopedia
Encephalartos longifolius is a low-growing palm
-like cycad
in the family Zamiaceae
. It is endemic to South Africa
and is commonly known as the breadpalm or broodboom. The species name comes from the Latin longis, long and folius, leaf. This cycad is listed as near threatened in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
, South Africa
growing at heights of up to six hundred metres. It grows in a variety of different habitats on the mountain ridges from west of Joubertina
in the Kouga
mountains east to near Grahamstown
. There are a large number of locations where breadpalms grow but on the whole, populations are declining.
Arecaceae
Arecaceae or Palmae , are a family of flowering plants, the only family in the monocot order Arecales. There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 species, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates...
-like cycad
Cycad
Cycads are seed plants typically characterized by a stout and woody trunk with a crown of large, hard and stiff, evergreen leaves. They usually have pinnate leaves. The individual plants are either all male or all female . Cycads vary in size from having a trunk that is only a few centimeters...
in the family Zamiaceae
Zamiaceae
The Zamiaceae are a family of cycads that are superficially palm or fern-like. They are divided into two subfamilies with eight genera and about 150 species in the tropical and warm temperate regions of Africa, Australia and North and South America....
. It is endemic to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and is commonly known as the breadpalm or broodboom. The species name comes from the Latin longis, long and folius, leaf. This cycad is listed as near threatened in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Description
The breadpalm grows up to three metres tall and develops a very thick trunk with age. This is crowned with dark or metallic green, semi-glossy, arching leaves up to two metres long and moderately keeled. The leaflets are lanceolate, overlapping upwards and have smooth margins. There are one to three green, ovoid male cones up to sixty centimetres long and twenty centimetres in diameter. A similar number of green female cones are more robust with a diameter of up to forty centimetres. The seeds are red and can reach five centimetres long.Distribution
This species is found in coastal regions of Eastern Cape ProvinceEastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are Port Elizabeth and East London. It was formed in 1994 out of the "independent" Xhosa homelands of Transkei and Ciskei, together with the eastern portion of the Cape Province...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
growing at heights of up to six hundred metres. It grows in a variety of different habitats on the mountain ridges from west of Joubertina
Joubertina
Joubertina is a small town in the Cacadu District Municipality of the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.Joubertina is located on the R62 road in the Langkloof valley.The town has a station on the narrow gauge avontuur railway.-External links:*...
in the Kouga
Kouga Local Municipality
The Kouga Local Municipality is located in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, approximately 20 km west of Port Elizabeth, and forms part of the Cacadu District Municipality...
mountains east to near Grahamstown
Grahamstown
Grahamstown is a city in the Eastern Cape Province of the Republic of South Africa and is the seat of the Makana municipality. The population of greater Grahamstown, as of 2003, was 124,758. The population of the surrounding areas, including the actual city was 41,799 of which 77.4% were black,...
. There are a large number of locations where breadpalms grow but on the whole, populations are declining.