Zamia pumila, is a small, tough, woody cycad of the West Indies and Cuba. Zamia pumila was the first species described for the genus and hence is the type species for the genus Zamia and the family Zamiaceae.
This cycad contains reddish seed cones with a distinct acuminate tip. The leaves are 60-120 cm (2-4 feet) long, with 5-30 pairs of leaflets (pinnae). Each leaflet is linear to lanceolate or oblong-obovate, 8-25 cm long and 0.5-2 cm broad, with distinct teeth at the tip. They are often revolute, with prickly petioles. It is similar in many respects to Zamia furfuracea, but with slightly narrower leaflets, and to Zamia integrifolia, which differs in the more commonly entire (untoothed or only slightly so) leaflets.
This is a low-growing plant, with trunk that grows to 3-25 cm high and diameter, but is often subterranean. Over time, it forms a multi-branched cluster, with a large, tuberous root system, which is actually an extension of the above-ground stems.
Like other cycads, Zamia pumila is dioecious, having male or female plants. The male cones are cylindrical, growing to 3-15 cm long; they are often clustered. The female cones are elongate-ovoid and grow to 6-15 cm long and 4-6 cm in diameter.
Zamia pumila inhabits a variety of habitats with well-drained sands or sandy loam soils. It prefers filtered sunlight to partial shade. Populations are presently limited to central Cuba and the Dominican Republic. Though it was once endemic to southern Puerto Rico and Haiti, it appears to have been eradicated in those areas due to intensive land use.
This plant is poisonous, producing a toxin that affects the gastrointestinal tract and nervous system. The toxin can however be removed by careful leaching, and the roots and half-buried stems were used by Native American people for their yield of a sago-like starch.
Controversy has long existed over the classification of Zamia in Florida; these were sometimes listed in the past under Z. pumila, but the Flora of North America treats these plants as Z. integrifolia.
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