Coning Encephalartos

[5150cycad]

I am getting a lot of cones this year on my encephalartos cycads. The first picture is an encephalartos Cerinus cone and the second picture is an encephalartos horridus cone. If you have any coning encephalartos please post some pictures. 

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

Bryan, What's the caudex size on both of these?

[Tracy]

On 7/27/2017, 8:15:28, 5150cycad said:

The first picture is an encephalartos Cerinus cone and the second picture is an encephalartos horridus cone. If you have any coning encephalartos please post some pictures. 

Nice to have your E cerinus and horridus coning Bryan!  Is this the first cones on these two, or have they coned previously?  Your cerinus cone looks like a female to me (although I haven't looked up male and female cones of cerinus and mine is a few years from coning).  Maybe someone else can weigh in on that one for you, or you can just look it up if you don't already know for sure. 

I'll wait a little to take new photos for my cones to develop more.  My second E nat x horridus is coning for the first time (the other started coning in 2014 or 15 and is a male).  As the new cone is just now starting to pop out, I still can't tell if this other plant is male or female until the cone gets a little larger.  The other Encephalartos I have which is just pushing a cone the first time, but the cones are still down in a mass of brown wool, is my E arenarius x woodii.  I'm waiting with baited breath to find out if it will be male or female.  Fingers crossed on that one.  I already posted my E longifolius male cone pushing with 2 leaves this summer.  Kind of funky to have a cone and 2 leaves emerging, but it's the one which didn't flush at all since last summer's cones.

[5150cycad]

7 hours ago, TexasColdHardyPalms said:

Bryan, What's the caudex size on both of these?

Joseph,

The caudex on the Cerinus is about 10" or so. Hard to get exact measurement because most of caudex is below soil line. It keeps pulling itself down. The horridus is approximately 11-12".  

4 hours ago, Tracy said:

Nice to have your E cerinus and horridus coning Bryan!  Is this the first cones on these two, or have they coned previously?  Your cerinus cone looks like a female to me (although I haven't looked up male and female cones of cerinus and mine is a few years from coning).  Maybe someone else can weigh in on that one for you, or you can just look it up if you don't already know for sure. 

I'll wait a little to take new photos for my cones to develop more.  My second E nat x horridus is coning for the first time (the other started coning in 2014 or 15 and is a male).  As the new cone is just now starting to pop out, I still can't tell if this other plant is male or female until the cone gets a little larger.  The other Encephalartos I have which is just pushing a cone the first time, but the cones are still down in a mass of brown wool, is my E arenarius x woodii.  I'm waiting with baited breath to find out if it will be male or female.  Fingers crossed on that one.  I already posted my E longifolius male cone pushing with 2 leaves this summer.  Kind of funky to have a cone and 2 leaves emerging, but it's the one which didn't flush at all since last summer's cones.

Tracy,

This is the first time both the Cerinus and horridus coned. i am not sure if the Cerinus cone is male or female yet. There were not lot of pictures on-line, however I think there is at least a little chance of it being female based on what I have seen. I am pretty sure the horridus cone will be a female. Man, that would be pretty exciting if you get a female cone on the Arenarius x woodii. I really want to see an F2 Arenarius x woodii or F2  horridus woodii. I can't wait to see the cone on the Arenarius x woodii. Please post pictures when he/she exposed himself/herself. Here are pictures of manikensis  & ferox cones. The ferox is pushing 4 cones.

[Palm Tree Jim]

Picture of E. villosus flushing and coning.

[5150cycad]

6 hours ago, Palm Tree Jim said:

Picture of E. villosus flushing and coning.

Looking good Jim! 

[Got Palms]

Here are a few kisambo, vilosis and not a encephalarto but interesting looking Cycad ?

[5150cycad]

6 hours ago, Got Palms said:

Here are a few kisambo, vilosis and not a encephalarto but interesting looking Cycad ?

Great pictures. Thanks for sharing. What species of the last one? Thanks 

[Palm Tree Jim]

Looking good!

[Got Palms]

Not sure which species of Cycad but here is a pic of plant maybe u could identify!

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

The cone looks like a revoluta x debaoensis hybrid, but the leaves are not forked enough to be an F1 cross.  The leaves look like a diannensis but the cone rules that species out.  

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

Very interesting that your cycas cones this time of year.  Ours will only cone in the early spring here.

[Tracy]

On 7/29/2017, 9:25:14, 5150cycad said:

I can't wait to see the cone on the Arenarius x woodii. Please post pictures when he/she exposed himself/herself.

Still early, but three cones coming out of the E arenarius x woodii hybrid.

[Tracy]

On 7/29/2017, 9:25:14, 5150cycad said:

I can't wait to see the cone on the Arenarius x woodii. Please post pictures when he/she exposed himself/herself.

Still early, but three cones coming out of the E arenarius x woodii hybrid.

[5150cycad]

5 minutes ago, Tracy said:

Still early, but three cones coming out of the E arenarius x woodii hybrid.

WOW! Look at all the fuzz. How big is the caudex on this plant? Thanks for the update.

[Tracy]

On 8/7/2017, 8:18:53, 5150cycad said:

WOW! Look at all the fuzz. How big is the caudex on this plant?

It is hard to judge, and I don't have calipers to get around it.  I'll guess at about 18" or 45cm in diameter.  Sadly, I'm about 99.8% certain that this is a male, not the female I had dreamed about.  I just noticed 2 new leaves from a second pup have popped out that I had not seen before.  The first pup is probably about 7-8" or  nearly 20cm now too.

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

Thats looking like a male. Bummer.

[annafl]

My Encephalartos sclavoi is coning for the first time.  I'm thinking this is a female!  Thoughts?  I need to get a wide view of the whole plant.  It's my favorite cycad of the ones we have- always very full and pretty.  A little bleached out right now from a bit too much summer sun, but has a nice, bluish tint.

 

[5150cycad]

9 hours ago, annafl said:

My Encephalartos sclavoi is coning for the first time.  I'm thinking this is a female!  Thoughts?  I need to get a wide view of the whole plant.  It's my favorite cycad of the ones we have- always very full and pretty.  A little bleached out right now from a bit too much summer sun, but has a nice, bluish tint.

 

Great looking sclavoi Ana. Hopefully you are right about it being a female. My guess at first sight was a female, however when zooming in on the top portion of the cone in the first picture it almost looks like there could be little tiny pollen sacks between the scales. It is hard to what it is in the picture though. Maybe you can get a close-up picture of the cone. 

[annafl]

Thanks, Bryan!  I am just learning about cones on encephalartos since mine are just starting to cone.  I did see the white flecks.  So that means it is a male?  The cone is just so large and central, I was hoping it was female.  It seems most of my cycads are males.  I do have a gorgeous ferox that had three cones on it last year, and a Dioon spinulosum that's female.  Otherwise it seems like all males.  Beautiful nevertheless, but I love a nice, big female cone.

 

[annafl]

A full view of my Encephalartos sclavoi.  The sun has bleached it out a little this year.  It will look bluer in fall/winter.  I think this one is one of my favorite cycads of the ones we have.

 

[5150cycad]

1 hour ago, annafl said:

A full view of my Encephalartos sclavoi.  The sun has bleached it out a little this year.  It will look bluer in fall/winter.  I think this one is one of my favorite cycads of the ones we have.

 

Wow, what a beautiful plant. I think we all wish for female plants, however, you can't have one without the other. I am not 100% that those specs are pollen. It could be from something else. It was just my observation from zooming in on the first photo. If it is pollen then you should start seeing a lot more of it. Try tapping the cone and see if pollen drops. Easy for me to say right? Getting to that cone looks like a nightmare. Those leaves will make you feel like a human pin cushion. Ouch!!! Hopefully the specs are something else and you have yourself a beautiful female sclavoi. 

By the way, let me know if you are in need of ferox pollen, I have 4 male cones that will be ready in about a month or two. 

[annafl]

2 hours ago, 5150cycad said:

Wow, what a beautiful plant. I think we all wish for female plants, however, you can't have one without the other. I am not 100% that those specs are pollen. It could be from something else. It was just my observation from zooming in on the first photo. If it is pollen then you should start seeing a lot more of it. Try tapping the cone and see if pollen drops. Easy for me to say right? Getting to that cone looks like a nightmare. Those leaves will make you feel like a human pin cushion. Ouch!!! Hopefully the specs are something else and you have yourself a beautiful female sclavoi. 

By the way, let me know if you are in need of ferox pollen, I have 4 male cones that will be ready in about a month or two. 

Thanks, Bryan.  I will tap it in a couple of days if it ever stops raining here.  We've had over ten inches of rain in the last 3 days and still expecting more.  I've never tried pollinating, as I never really figured out how to do it, nor would I know what to do with so many seed!  I no longer have that much space in my garden.  However, I love the big, colorful female cones.  Here's my female ferox last year and my male as well.  The female rested this year (rightfully so after those huge cones), but the male is just starting to cone again and is bringing another four cones this year as well!  Ferox are so colorful.  I love them!

 

[annafl]

Here's my male.  It wouldn't let me upload more photos on the last post.

 

Edited August 28, 2017 by annafl

[annafl]

On 8/28/2017, 10:45:17, 5150cycad said:

Wow, what a beautiful plant. I think we all wish for female plants, however, you can't have one without the other. I am not 100% that those specs are pollen. It could be from something else. It was just my observation from zooming in on the first photo. If it is pollen then you should start seeing a lot more of it. Try tapping the cone and see if pollen drops. Easy for me to say right? Getting to that cone looks like a nightmare. Those leaves will make you feel like a human pin cushion. Ouch!!! Hopefully the specs are something else and you have yourself a beautiful female sclavoi. 

By the way, let me know if you are in need of ferox pollen, I have 4 male cones that will be ready in about a month or two. 

My sclavoi cone continues to grow in height and diameter.  Approx. 18 inches tall.  I've been tapping it daily and nothing coming out at all, whereas my male gratus and kisambo cones are dropping lots of pollen.  I do still see white specs in photos.  Here, I think it might be raindrops, but can't explain the white spots on previous photos.  I can't see them in real life, though.  I'm thinking this is a female.  Any further thoughts?  I'll keep tapping!

[5150cycad]

58 minutes ago, annafl said:

My sclavoi cone continues to grow in height and diameter.  Approx. 18 inches tall.  I've been tapping it daily and nothing coming out at all, whereas my male gratus and kisambo cones are dropping lots of pollen.  I do still see white specs in photos.  Here, I think it might be raindrops, but can't explain the white spots on previous photos.  I can't see them in real life, though.  I'm thinking this is a female.  Any further thoughts?  I'll keep tapping!

I think you are probably right. More than likely a female. Beautiful cycad.

[annafl]

15 hours ago, 5150cycad said:

I think you are probably right. More than likely a female. Beautiful cycad.

Thanks so much!