cycad (sikad)

One of the Cycadacea. Cycadaceæ (sik-a-dā sē-ē), n. pl. pl. [ Cycas [ terminal bud, and bears a crown of large pinnate leaves, which are circinate in vernation. The flowers are diœcio us, the male flowers in terminal cones formed of scales bearing numerous one-celled anthers on the dorsal surface. The seeds are borne on the margins of altered leaves in the genus Cycas, and on the inner surface of the peltate scales of a cone in the other genera. The wood is without resin, IMG:content-1904.png:[blocks in formation] a. Encephalartos. b. Macrozamia. c. Inflorescence of Cycas. and the pith large. The plants of this order inhabit India, Australia, the Cape of Good Hope, and tropical America. There are about 60 species, in 9 genera, of which the chief are Cycas, Zamia, Macrozamia, Encephalartos, and Dion. The farinaceous pith of various species is used for food, and they are frequently cultivated in hothouses for ornament or because of their curious habit. The Cycadaceæ are found in the various geological formations, beginning with the Permian. They are exceedingly abundant in the Mesozoic, and especially in the earlier stages of that series. (See Mesozoic.) On this account the Mesozoic formations are sometimes cla ed together as representing the "age of cycads." See Pterophyllum, Zamites, Otozamites, Ptero zamites, Podozamites. cycadaceous (sik-a-dā'shius), In bot ., be longing to or resembling the natural order Cy cadaceæ.