Zamia furfuracea, Cardboard Palm, Cardboard Plant

 Zamia furfuracea L.f. ex Aiton
Family: Zamiaceae
Synonyms: Palma pumila Mill. , Palmifolium furfuraceum (L.f. ex Aiton) Kuntze , Zamia crassifolia T.Moore , Zamia furfuracea var. trewii A. DC. , Zamia gutierrezii Sauvalle , Zamia latifolia Lodd. ex Miq. , Zamia media var. gutierrezii (Sauvalle) J.Schust. , Zamia vestita Van Houtte

Common names: Cardboard Palm, Cardboard Plant, Bay Rush, Camptie, Cardboard Palm, Coontie, Guayiga,Florida Arrowroot, Marunguey, Mexican Cycad, Palmita de Jardín, Sago Cycas,
Seminole Bread, Yugulla
Arabic: زاميا وبغية
Chinese: 美叶苏铁

Description: he plant has a short, sometimes subterranean trunk up to 20 cm broad and high, usually marked with scars from old leaf bases. It grows very slowly when young, but its growth accelerates after the trunk matures. Including the leaves, the whole plant typically grows to 1.3 m tall with a width of about 2 m.

The leaves radiate from the center of the trunk; each leaf is 50-150 cm long with a petiole 15-30 cm long, and 6-12 pairs of extremely stiff, pubescent (fuzzy) green leaflets. These leaflets grow 8-20 cm long and 3-5 cm wide. Occasionally, the leaflets are toothed toward the tips. The circular crowns of leaves resemble fern or palm fronds. They are erect in full sun, horizontal in shade.

This plant produces a rusty-brown cone in the center of the female plant. The egg-shaped female (seed-producing) cones and smaller male (pollen-producing) cone clusters are produced on separate plants. Pollination is by certain insects, namely the belid weevil Rhopalotria mollis.

Cardboard Cycad plant can only be reproduced by the fleshy, brightly crimson-colored seeds produced by the female plants. The germination process is very slow and difficult to achieve in cultivation; as a result, many plants sold for horticultural use are illegally collected in the wild, leading to the species being classified as Vulnerable.

This plant is easy to care for and grows best in moist, well-drained soil. They do well in full sun or shade, but not in constant deep shade. They are fairly salt- and drought-tolerant, but should be protected from extreme cold. They should occasionally be fed with palm food. After Cycas revoluta, this is probably the most popular cycad species in cultivation. In temperate regions it is commonly grown as a houseplant and, in subtropical areas, as a container or bedding plant outdoors.

All parts of the plant are poisonous to animals and humans. The toxicity causes liver and kidney failure, as well as eventual paralysis. Dehydration sets in very quickly. No treatment for the poisoning is currently known.

Toxic Part: All parts of all Zamia species are poisonous. The toxin can be removed from the grated root by water; treated plant material was a commercial source of starch.

20 Published articles of Zamia furfuracea
1.    Starch accumulation in the megagametophyte of Ceratozamia mexicana Brongn. and Zamia furfuracea L.f.
Sanchez-Tinoco, M. Y.; Ordonez-Balderas, J. R.; Engleman, E. M. - Proceedings of Cycad 2008. The 8th International Conference on Cycad Biology, Panama City, Panama, 13-15 January 2008  Pages: 251-262   Published: 2012

2.    Tobacco ringspot virus found in the cardboard cycad (Zamia furfuracea) in Florida.
Baker, C. A.; Adkins, S. - PLANT DISEASE  Volume: 91   Issue: 1   Pages: 112-112   DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1094/PD-91-0112B   Published: JAN 2007

3.    Histological and biochemical characterization of the in vitro cultures of Zamia furfuracea L.
Dominic, V. J.; Joseph, Joy P. - Plant Cell Biotechnology and Molecular Biology  Volume: 7   Issue: 3-4   Pages: 187-190   Published: SEP-DEC 2006

4.    Phytophthora cinnamomi on Zamia furfuracea in Taiwan.
Ann, P. J.; Tsai, J. N.; Wang, I. T. - Plant Pathology Bulletin  Volume: 13   Issue: 3   Pages: 233-236   Published: 2004

5.    Formation of somatic embryos from leaf callus of Zamia furfuracea L.: A preliminary report
Dhiman, Manjul; Moitra, Sushma; Singh, M. N.; et al. - Phytomorphology  Volume: 48   Issue: 3   Pages: 317-322   Published: July-Sept., 1998

6.    HISTOLOGICAL-CHANGES DURING MATURATION IN MALE AND FEMALE CONES OF THE CYCAD ZAMIA-FURFURACEA AND THEIR SIGNIFICANCE IN RELATION TO POLLINATION BIOLOGY
VOVIDES, AP; NORSTOG, KJ; FAWCETT, PKS; et al. - BOTANICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY  Volume: 111   Issue: 2   Pages: 241-252   Published: FEB 1993

7.    MICROTUBULES IN DIVIDING ROOT-CELLS OF THE CONIFER PINUS-RADIATA AND THE CYCAD ZAMIA-FURFURACEA
FOWKE, LC - CELL BIOLOGY INTERNATIONAL  Volume: 17   Issue: 2   Pages: 143-151   DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1006/cbir.1993.1051   Published: FEB 1993

8.    Histological changes during maturation in male and female cones of the cycad Zamia furfuracea and their significance in relation to pollination biology
Vovides, Andrew P.; Norstog, Knut J.; Fawcett, Priscilla K. S.; et al. - Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society  Volume: 111   Issue: 2   Pages: 241-252   Published: 1993

9.    SOMATIC EMBRYOGENESIS AND ORGANOGENESIS IN ZAMIA-FISCHERI, Z-FURFURACEA AND Z-PUMILA
CHAVEZ, VM; LITZ, RE; NORSTOG, K - PLANT CELL TISSUE AND ORGAN CULTURE  Volume: 30   Issue: 2   Pages: 99-105   DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00034302   Published: AUG 1992

10.    DEVELOPMENT OF THE POLLEN-TUBE OF ZAMIA-FURFURACEA (ZAMIACEAE) AND ITS EVOLUTIONARY IMPLICATIONS
CHOI, JS; FRIEDMAN, WE - AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY  Volume: 78   Issue: 4   Pages: 544-560   DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2445264   Published: APR 1991

11.    ULTRASTRUCTURAL STUDIES OF POLLEN TUBE GROWTH IN-VIVO IN ZAMIA-FURFURACEA EVIDENCE OF INTRACELLULAR PENETRATION OF THE NUCELLUS
CHOI J-S; FRIEDMAN W E - American Journal of Botany  Volume: 77   Issue: 6 SUPPL   Pages: 10   Published: 1990

12.    INSECT-CYCAD SYMBIOSIS AND ITS RELATION TO THE POLLINATION OF ZAMIA-FURFURACEA (ZAMIACEAE) BY RHOPALOTRIA-MOLLIS (CURCULIONIDAE)
NORSTOG, KJ; FAWCETT, PKS - AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY  Volume: 76   Issue: 9   Pages: 1380-1394   DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2444562   Published: SEP 1989

13.    Container production of comptie, Zamia furfuracea Ait.
Keever, G. J.; Cobb, G. S. - Research Report Series - Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn University  Issue: 5   Pages: 15-16, 18   Published: 1987, publ. 1988

14.    THE ROLE OF BEETLES IN THE POLLINATION OF ZAMIA-FURFURACEA L FIL (ZAMIACEAE)
NORSTOG, KJ; STEVENSON, DW; NIKLAS, KJ - BIOTROPICA  Volume: 18   Issue: 4   Pages: 300-306   DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2388573   Published: DEC 1986

15.    PHENETIC AND OTHER SYSTEMATIC STUDIES OF THE ZAMIA-LODDIGESII Z-FURFURACEA COMPLEX
SCHUTZMAN, B; VOVIDES, AP - AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY  Volume: 72   Issue: 6   Pages: 968-969   Published: 1985

16.    PHENETIC AND OTHER SYSTEMATIC STUDIES OF THE ZAMIA-LODDIGESII-ZAMIA-FURFURACEA COMPLEX
SCHUTZMAN B; VOVIDES A P - American Journal of Botany  Volume: 72   Issue: 6   Pages: 968-969   Published: 1985

17.    SYSTEMATIC STUDIES OF THE ZAMIA-LODDIGESII-ZAMIA-FURFURACEA COMPLEX ZAMIACEAE IN MEXICO
SCHUTZMAN B M - American Journal of Botany  Volume: 72   Issue: 6   Pages: 968   Published: 1985

18.    SYSTEMATIC STUDIES OF THE ZAMIA-LODDIGESII FURFURACEA COMPLEX (ZAMIACEAE) IN MEXICO
SCHUTZMAN, BM - AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY  Volume: 72   Issue: 6   Pages: 968-968   Published: 1985

19.    EFFECT OF H2SO4 AND GA3 ON SEED-GERMINATION OF ZAMIA-FURFURACEA
DEHGAN, B; SCHUTZMAN, B - HORTSCIENCE  Volume: 18   Issue: 3   Pages: 371-372   Published: 1983

20.    ULTRASTRUCTURAL INVESTIGATIONS OF SYMBIOSIS OF CYANOPHYCEAE WITH CYCADEAE- (CYCAS-CIRCINNALIS-L, ZAMIA-FURFURACEA-L)
NEUMANN, D - BIOCHEMIE UND PHYSIOLOGIE DER PFLANZEN  Volume: 171   Issue: 4   Pages: 313-322   Published: 1977