The open plant encyclopedia
Snap a photo or search by any name to see how to care for it, where it comes from, whether it's safe, and a 3D model you can turn.
The plants people record most in your country, and ones that grow there wild.
Filter by what you want to do, shape, origin, country, care and safety.
Encephalartos
Also called Bread Palms, Bread Tree
Encephalartos is a genus of cycad native to Africa. Several species of Encephalartos are commonly referred to as bread trees, or bread palms since a bread-like starchy food can be prepared from the centre of the stem. The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek ἐγκέφαλος (encéphalos), meaning "head", and ἄρτος (ártos), meaning "bread", referring to the use of the pith to make food. They are, in evolutionary terms, some of the most primitive living gymnosperms.
All the species are endangered, some critically, due to their exploitation by collectors and traditional medicine gatherers. The whole genus is listed under CITES Appendix I which prohibits international trade in specimens of these species except for certain non-commercial motives, such as scientific research.
Cycad · Eastern Cape giant cycad · Cycad · Alexandria cycad · Cycad · Escarpment cycad · Lake Natron Cycad · Cycad · Chimanimani cycad · Runde cycad · Cycad · Winterberg Cycad
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Encephalartos by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
