About Lepidozamia peroffskyana Regel
Lepidozamia peroffskyana is a slow-growing, low-maintenance, long-lived cycad that works well as a feature plant in semi-shaded locations or grown in a container. It can grow up to seven metres tall, though most individuals reach around four metres. Its trunk can reach up to eighty centimetres in diameter, and is covered in persistent leaf base remains that create an interesting texture. The crown is made up of numerous leaves that grow up to three metres long; each leaf holds around two hundred narrow, glossy, dark green leaflets, which are somewhat lax, spreading, and softly coriaceous. Each leaflet has seven to thirteen parallel veins, a trait that distinguishes this species from other members of its genus. This plant produces one rosette of fronds per year, with six rosettes present at any time, stacked vertically above one another. As the newest rosette matures, the lowest rosette dies back. The cylindrical cones of this species are among the largest of all cycad cones, only matched in size by Encephalartos transvenosus. Male cones can reach seventy five centimetres in length, while female cones can reach ninety centimetres, and cones can weigh up to forty five kilograms. The plant produces large, numerous seeds that have a red sarcotesta. All parts of this plant, especially the seeds, are toxic to livestock and humans. If ingested, seeds can cause severe gastrointestinal irritation, abdominal cramps, vomiting, nausea, and diarrhea, and may also cause liver damage and muscular paralysis. This species is native to southeastern Queensland and northeastern New South Wales, where it occurs between Gympie (north of Brisbane) and the Manning River near Forster. It grows in scattered small communities in wet sclerophyll forests or on rainforest margins, most often on steep slopes at elevations from sea level up to around 1,000 metres.
