The Arecaceae is a family of perennial flowering plants in the monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly known as palms. Those having a tree-like form are called palm trees. Currently, 181 genera with around 2,600 species are known, most of which are restricted to tropical and subtropical climates. Most palms are distinguished by their large, compound, evergreen leaves, known as fronds, arranged at the top of an unbranched stem. However, palms exhibit an enormous diversity in physical characteristics and inhabit nearly every type of habitat within their range, from rainforests to deserts.
Sago is a starch extracted from the pith, or spongy core tissue, of various tropical palm stems, especially those of Metroxylon sagu. It is a major staple food for the lowland peoples of New Guinea and the Maluku Islands, where it is called saksak, rabia and sagu. The largest supply of sago comes from Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia and Malaysia. Large quantities of sago are sent to Europe and North America for cooking purposes. It is traditionally cooked and eaten in various forms, such as rolled into balls, mixed with boiling water to form a glue-like paste (papeda), or as a pancake.
Cycads are seed plants that typically have a stout and woody (ligneous) trunk with a crown of large, hard, stiff, evergreen and (usually) pinnate leaves. The species are dioecious, that is, individual plants of a species are either male or female. Cycads vary in size from having trunks only a few centimeters to several meters tall. They typically grow very slowly and live very long. Because of their superficial resemblance, they are sometimes mistaken for palms or ferns, but they are not closely related to either group.
Trachycarpus is a genus of eleven species of palms native to Asia, from the Himalaya east to eastern China. They are fan palms, with the leaves with a bare petiole terminating in a rounded fan of numerous leaflets. The leaf bases produce persistent fibres that often give the trunk a characteristic hairy appearance. All species are dioecious, with male and female flowers produced on separate plants although female plants will sometimes produce male flowers, allowing occasional self-pollination.
Heart of palm is a vegetable harvested from the inner core and growing bud of certain palm trees, most notably the coconut, juçara, açaí palm, palmetto, and peach palm. Harvesting of many uncultivated or wild single-stemmed palms results in palm tree death. However, other palm species are clonal or multi-stemmed plants, and moderate harvesting will not kill the entire clonal palm. Heart of palm may be eaten on its own, and often it is eaten in a salad.
Cycas is a genus of plants belonging to a very ancient lineage, the Cycadophyta, which are not closely related to palms, ferns, trees or any other modern group of plants. They are evergreen perennials which achieved their maximum diversity in the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, when they were distributed almost worldwide. At the end of the Cretaceous, when the non-avian dinosaurs became extinct, so did most of the cycas in the Northern Hemisphere.
Zamia furfuracea is a cycad endemic to southeastern Veracruz state in eastern Mexico.
Cycas revoluta is a species of gymnosperm in the family Cycadaceae, native to southern Japan including the Ryukyu Islands. It is one of several species used for the production of sago, as well as an ornamental plant. The sago cycad can be distinguished by a thick coat of fibers on its trunk. The sago cycad is sometimes mistakenly thought to be a palm, although the only similarity between the two is that they look similar and both produce seeds. The leaves grow from the trunk and start out as small leaves near the centre of the plant.
Eumaeus atala, also known as the Atala butterfly or coontie hairstreak, is a small colorful butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. It is found in southeastern Florida in the United States, and the Bahamas, Cuba, and the Cayman Islands in the West Indies. Its coloration and habits are unique among butterflies within its range.
Butia is a genus of palms in the family Arecaceae, native to the South American countries of Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina. Many species produce edible fruits, which are sometimes used to make alcoholic beverages and other foods. The name is derived from a Brazilian vernacular word for members of the genus.
Cycas beddomei is a species of cycad in the genus Cycas, native to India, where it is confined to a small area of Andhra Pradesh state in the Tirumala Hills in scrubland and brush covered hills.
The Volunteer Park Conservatory is a botanical garden, conservatory, and Seattle landmark located in Seattle, Washington at the north end of Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill.
Sago is a starch extracted from the stems of metroxylon sagu palms.
Cycas circinalis, also known as the queen sago, is a species of cycad known in the wild only from southern India. Cycas circinalis is the only gymnosperm species found among native Sri Lankan flora.
Metroxylon sagu, the true sago palm, is a species of palm in the genus Metroxylon, native to tropical southeastern Asia.
Cycas media is a palm-like cone-bearing plant widespread in seasonally dry tropical sclerophyll woodlands close to the east coast of Queensland, with scattered occurrences also in northern Northern Territory and Western Australia, Australia. The dark green leathery, thick leaves are pinnately divided and grow in annual flushes from a massive apical bud. It is tolerant of bushfire and often re-foliates immediately following a dry season fire, before the beginning of the next rainy season. All plant parts are considered highly toxic. However, the seeds were eaten by Aboriginal Australians after careful and extensive preparation to remove the toxins.
Cycas rumphii, commonly known as queen sago or the queen sago palm, is a dioecious gymnosperm, a species of cycad in the genus Cycas native to Indonesia, New Guinea and Christmas Island. Although palm-like in appearance, it is not a palm.
Oncosperma tigillarium is an Asian species of palm tree in the family Arecaceae.
Aulacaspis yasumatsui, or cycad aulacaspis scale (CAS), is a scale insect species in the genus Aulacaspis that feeds on cycad species such as Cycas revoluta or Dioon purpusii. Other common names include the cycad scale, the sago palm scale, and the Asian cycad scale. This is a serious pest of cycads which can kill its host plant.
Zamia integrifolia, also known as coontie palm is a small, tough, woody cycad native to the southeastern United States, the Bahamas, Cuba, and the Cayman Islands.
