Cycas revoluta Seeds | Sago Palm
LATIN NAME: Cycas revoluta
COMMON NAME: Sago Palm
Plant Profile
Cycas revoluta, better known as Sago Palm, is a palm in the cycad family, native to Japan’s southern most islands. Sago palm holds its stiff, feathery, dark-green leaves in dense rosette, and the whole plant stands like a slow, living fossil. The blooms are worked steadily by bees for as long as they are open. For the gardener, the sum of these traits is a plant that is easy to live with.
Science & Biotechnology
As part of the cycad family, Cycas revoluta contributes to research on plant classification and adaptation, while nurseries and gardeners continue to trial it for cultivation. Because it has been grown for so long, its garden habits are thoroughly documented.
Uses & Benefits
Beyond its ornamental appeal, Sago Palm has the practical versatility that makes a plant worth growing from seed year after year. Sago palm is a fine, bold plant of dry garden and study collection. It is a fine, bold plant of open, sunny, sharp-draining garden. Give young plants warmth and sharp-draining soil, and rosettes will rise over the years. Beyond the establishment year, its needs are simple and few.
Sago palms are ancient ornamentals whose pith once yielded famine starch after careful detoxification; all parts, especially the seeds, contain cycasin and are toxic if unprepared, so they are grown strictly for their primeval beauty.
Growing from Seed
Sago Palm is one of those generous plants that come along well from seed. Level a tray of loose seed compost, sow evenly, cover to about the seed’s own depth, and keep it moist in full light. Once the seedlings have made true leaves, pot them on individually and plant out when they are sturdy and conditions are right.
Our Take
Sago Palm repays a little patience at sowing time with plenty of garden presence later.
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Related Reading
Gardeners who grow Sago Palm often pair it with these related subjects: