Encephalartos afer
Eastern Cape dwarf cycad
Family Zamiaceae
About
Encephalartos afer, the Eastern Cape dwarf cycad, is a near-threatened cycad from the Eastern Cape of South Africa. It has a mostly underground stem and feathery, twisted leaves.
Care at a glance
- Pet safety
- Not recorded. We have no source on whether this plant is safe for cats, dogs or other pets — that is not the same as safe. Keep it out of reach until you have checked.
- People
- Not recorded.
- Mature size
- Mostly underground stem to about 40 cm; leaves up to 1 m long.
Field notes
Morphology
The stem is largely below ground, rarely branched and up to about 40 cm long. Dark green pinnate leaves reach 1 m and look ruffled because the crowded leaflets twist in different directions. New leaves are brown and woolly, losing most hair with age. Each plant bears a single cone that turns greenish-yellow; female cones produce glossy scarlet seeds.
Distribution & habitat
About 10,000 mature plants occur in the Eastern Cape, from the coastal belt to roughly 100 km inland, mostly in grassland and sometimes in neighbouring bush.
Ecology
Male and female plants are separate. It was long assumed to be wind-pollinated, but recent studies suggest insects are the more likely pollinators. The seeds are large with a hard stony layer.
History & etymology
Formerly named Encephalartos caffer; the 2024 International Botanical Congress voted to replace "caffer" epithets, which derive from an ethnic slur, with "afer".
Conservation
One of the first three Cape cycads declared endangered by provincial conservation authorities. Collectors have depleted plants in accessible areas, and many have been lost to land conversion.
Habitat
- Altitude
- Not recorded
- Altitude class
- —
- Native to
- South Africa
- IUCN status
- Near threatened
Cultivation
- Difficulty
- Not recorded
Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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