Gorongo Cycad

Encephalartos manikensis (Gorongo Cycad, Gorongowe Cycad) is a species of cycad that is native to Mozambique and Zimbabwe.^[1]

Description

It is a cycad with an arborescent habit, with a stem up to 1.5 m high, sometimes with secondary stems originating from basal shoots. The pinnate leaves, arranged in a crown at the apex of the stem, are 1–2 m long, supported by a petiole 5–6 cm long, and composed of about 60 pairs of lanceolate leaflets, sometimes with 1-2 spines on the upper margin and lower, inserted on the rachis with an angle of 180°, reduced to thorns towards the petiole. It is a dioecious species, with male specimens that have from 1 to 4 cylindrical-ovoid cones, erect, 25–65 cm long and 15–22 cm broad, light green, and female specimens with 1-2 ovoid cones, 30 –45 cm and width 20–25 cm, The seeds are coarsely ovoid, 3–5 cm long, covered with a bright red sarcotesta.^[2]

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  Cone

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  Leaves

References