Common Names
Drakensberg cycad, Mont-aux-Sources cycad; isiDawu (Zulu) (2).Description
"The stem reaches a height of about 10 feet (roughly 3 m) and bears a somewhat open crown of straight or inward-curving leaves up to just over 3 feet (1 m) in length. These have very dense, pointed leaflets distinctively narrow - the middle ones less than ¼ inch (2-4 mm) wide - untoothed, with the margins rolled back, and bear a striking resemblance to fossil cycad leaflets of many million years ago. They are woolly and a greyish colour when young, becoming smoother and greenish-yellow or deep green with age."Two to 5 brown, densely woolly cones up to about 10 inches (25 cm) long are borne together in the heart of the tree. The female cones, slightly shorter than the male, bear yellowish seeds. The cones resemble those borne by E. friderici-guilielmi Lehm. and E. cycadifolius (Jacq.) Lehm., but these species have broader leaflets" (2).
Range
South Africa: "The mountains - often high mountains - from near Flagstaff in the Transkei to roughly Mont-aux-Sources in Natal" (2).Remarks
"The specific name honours M. Ed. de Ghellinch de Wolle, 'a noted amateur horticulturalist of Ghent'" (2).Citations
(1) Jones 1993.(2) Palmer & Pitman 1972.
[Encephalartos] [Zamiaceae] [home]
This page is from the Gymnosperm Database
URL: http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Canopy/2285/za/en/ghellinckii.htm
Edited by Christopher J. Earle
E-mail:earlecj@earthlink.net
Last modified on 29-Dec-98