Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Cycadophyta
Class: Cycadopsida
Order: Cycadales
Family: Zamiaceae
Genus: Lepidozamia
Species: L. peroffskyana
Binomial name: Lepidozamia peroffskyana
Synonyms: Macrozamia denisonii,
Common name: Pineapple zamia, Scaly zamia,
Lepidozamia peroffskyana is a palm-like cycad endemic to South-eastern Queensland and North-eastern New South Wales. This cycad grows up to seven metres tall but more usually reaches about four metres. The trunk is up to eighty centimetres in diameter and is covered by the persistent remains of leaf bases. The crown is formed from numerous leaves up to three metres long, each bearing about two hundred narrow, glossy, dark green leaflets, somewhat lax, spreading and softly coriaceous. Each has seven to thirteen parallel veins which helps to distinguish this species from other members of the genus.
They do not produce flowers and reproduce by means of cones borne on separate male and female plants. The cylindrical cones are some of the largest of all cycad cones. The male cones can reach seventy five centimetres long and the female cones ninety centimetres, weighing up to forty five kilograms. The seeds are large and numerous and have red sarcotesta (a seed coating).
Photographed at Pukekuras Park, New Plymouth, Taranaki.
The top surface of the leaflets.
The under surface of the leaflets
