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Some Facts About Growing Cycads

By Ann Evans


These lovely seed plants are rare today, but were quite common during the Jurassic period, so common that some people call this period the 'Age of Cycads'. Thanks to their large, luxurious leaves, the plant is quite similar to some palm species, but they are not closely related to them. In any case, these plants are really specific, and here are some facts about growing cycads.

Fertilizing is really important for successful growing for any type of plants, but especially when it comes to cycads. They need high levels of nitrogen, for example, and that's why using common palm fertilizers won't do no good. This type of fertilizer has really low nitrogen level, but people often use it for all plants that look like palms. 18 to 25 % of nitrogen is considered to be the best for these particular plants.

The point is to release fertilizers into the soil gradually, to achieve constant growth. The problem is that there are some periods that require excessive watering, and this will release too much fertilizing compounds into the soil. Special pellets, which are plastic coated, will resist larger amounts of water and continue releasing fertilizing compounds at the same rate.

In colder areas, the leaves might get cold-burned during winter. If this happens, you should fertilize your plant first, wait for a few days, and then remove all the burned leaves using a sharp knife. The new ones should appear within two or three weeks, and then it will be a good time to change your fertilizer, depending on the species you are growing, as well as your growing goals.

If the weather is still not warm enough, these new leaves should be protected from morning cold. Wrap them during nights, to make sure they won't get cold burns again. Although they are sensitive to cold, you can still successfully grow them in colder climate zones, if you take a really good care of them.

Some people grow cycads for plants alone, and some are more interested in seed production. If you are interested in producing seeds, you will have to have slightly different approach. The plants used for this purpose have to be strong enough to carry numerous heavy cones. That's why you need to fertilize them additionally maybe two months before the first cones will appear. In case you don't know when exactly this would happen, make sure the plant is old enough before using it for seed production..

If you are more interesting in growing these attractive plants for sale, your primary goal would probably be to grow plants with large, healthy, green leaves as soon as possible. This will require different approach, and you will start fertilizing them much earlier. In this case, your goal is to achieve faster growth in shorter period of time.

Try to gather as many professional advises about each species first and experiment with different fertilizers and different soil types. Some things might depend on the climate zone as well. Some species will be better for the seed production, and some will be perfect for some other purposes. Trust your instincts and this might make you even more successful in this really challenging work. Explore new ideas and good luck.




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