Encephalartos arenarius

Beautiful, Encephalartos, with a rich crown of arching blue-green leaves, with wide leaflets. E. arenarius occurs in a small area in South Africa, in the coastal dune forests and scrub bush in the Alexandria district. Rainfall is about 800 mm , evenly distributed, winters are cool and frostless, while summers are hot and quite dry. Encephalartos arenarius has attractive blue-green leaves Stems are 20-30 cm (8-12'') in diameter and measure up to 1 m (3 ft). They branch from the base and form clumps with stems of varying height. Taller stems usually lean over to one side. Leaves are light green with a blue bloom when they are young and become darker green as they age. The crown has a lush, exotic appearance because the rachis is recurved, and leaf segments are wide. Single cones are formed. They are light-green when mature. Female cones bear shiny red seeds. E. arenarius grows easily in cultivation. It needs draining (sandy!) soil with leaf mold or compost. It can be kept moist, but they can take the occasional drought. It grows in shade to direct sunlight, but half shade will give the best results. It thrives in frost free Mediterranean climates. It can take the long cool winters but it is a coastal species, sensitive to frost. E. arenarius It was threatened even before it was described as a species, however. When Dr Dyer visited the area in 1954, he was told by local farmers that "a large number had been removed for cultivation within recent times". (Dyer, R.A. : "A new cycad from the Cape Province".) Numerous plants were also removed to make way for farming activities, especially the establishment of pastures for dairy herds. Encephalartos arenarius is currently endangered in its habitat, while it was fairly numerous in the past. During the XX century, much of the coastal dune forest by Alexandria has been cleared and lost to pastures. Surviving specimens are visited by poachers as sandy soil is easy to dig. It is now protected with CITES. Our plants do have legal permits because seeds were collected from documented cultivated plants!

The size of this plant is: 18-20 cm base - 10 years old from seed.

We ship it bare-rooted, carefully wrapped with slightly moist perlite. This is because these cycads are currently grown in 40 cm pots. These pots are too heavy and they would easily damage other plants in the box if the parcel is mishandled. This cycad does not mind being bare rooted and will surely grow well in the new pot. Please provide a free-draining soil, rich in sand or other draining materials.

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