This cycad species is native to much of Florida, north to south. There is some disagreement as to there being one species, (one author says that there is only Zamia florida), and another old source says there is even four species in Florida. It seems that the one species idea is winning out nowadays. It grows naturally in dry, thin, sandy, well-drained soils but is adaptable to various kinds of well-drained soils. It makes a good specimen or foundation plant to a mass of groundcover. It even adapts to parking lot islands. The male plants bear the longer cones, that look like scaly spruce cones when closed, often in clusters of two or more. The female plants bear the shorter cones, that look more rattle-like, from one to five with the fleshy red-orange 1 inch long seeds that are exposed as the cones mature and split open.

Reply to this comment

I had to look it up because I was thinking of tying up raccoons when I saw the name. Coontie is a Creek word for "white root/white bread." People from the South probably know this.

Reply to this comment