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Encephalartos horridus
A small, slow-growing cycad from South Africa's Eastern Cape, known for stiff, spiny, blue-grey young leaves. It needs full sun, sharp drainage and little water to thrive.
Encephalartos horridus, commonly known as the Eastern Cape blue cycad, is a small, low-growing cycad up to 0.9 m (3.0 ft) high and 0.9 m (3.0 ft) wide. It is a native of Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, and found in arid shrublands, most commonly on ridges and slopes with shallow soils. The species is particularly known for its distinctly blue-gray leaves, although the degree of coloration can vary significantly. The species name horridus is Latin for 'bristly', after the plant's stiff, spiny leaflets.
Like all cycads, the Eastern Cape blue cycad is a slow grower. It responds well to deep, fertile soil enriched with compost. It is best suited to temperate and subtropical regions, however it can tolerate light to moderate frosts. It requires full sun, excellent drainage, not too much water and slightly acidic soil to prosper. It is common for the species to form new leaves and cones regularly. Plants are available from nurseries in many areas, however they are also easy to propagate from seeds. They can also be propagated from suckers with some patience and experience.
Naturally occurring Eastern Cape blue cycads can only be found around Port Elizabeth and Uitenhage districts of Eastern Cape, South Africa, which has a warm climate year round, average annual rainfall in the range of 250 to 600 mm (9.8 to 23.6 in) and summer temperatures up to 40 °C (104 °F). It prefers full sunlight and persists in a range of habitats including Karoo scrub, sourveld, deep fertile soil and open rocky ridges.
Eastern Cape giant cycad · Zululand cycad · Ground Cycad · Wood's cycad
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Encephalartos horridus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
