cycas

cycas
/suy"kas, -keuhs/, n.
any of several palmlike Old World tropical plants of the genus Cycas, some species of which are cultivated as ornamentals in warm climates.
[ < NL; see CYCAD]

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▪ plant genus
 a genus of 105 species of palmlike tropical and subtropical ornamental cycads (family Cycadaceae), among them trees 12 metres (40 feet) or more in height. Their leaves are dark green and circinate (uncoiling as fern leaves do), differing from those of other members of the family in having a midrib but no lateral veins. The seeds are borne along the margins of modified leaves, which are arranged in a whorl at the top of the trunk, rather than in compact cones. The leaves of C. revoluta, sometimes called the sago palm, are widely used as ceremonial “palms” and in floriculture (see photograph—>); the pithy stems of this and other species are a source of sago, a food starch. Several species, among them the Australian nut palm (C. media) and C. circinalis, a fern palm of the Malaysian area, bear edible seeds.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • cycas — cycas …   Dictionnaire des rimes

  • Cycas — Leaves and male cone of Cycas revoluta Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae …   Wikipedia

  • Cycas —  Pour l’article homonyme, voir Cycas (informatique).  …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Cycas — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda ? Cycas Cono masculino y hojas de Cycas revoluta Cl …   Wikipedia Español

  • cycas — [ sikas ] n. m. • 1803 lat. sc.; du gr. koix, koikos « palmier d Égypte » ♦ Bot. Plante gymnosperme (cycadées), arbre ou arbuste exotique, à port de palmier. ● cycas nom masculin (latin scientifique cycas, du grec kuiks, kuikos, palmier d Égypte) …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Cycas —   [zu griechisch kýkas, eine Palmenart], Gattung der Cycadeen mit acht Arten. Cycas revoluta ist eine dekorative Zierpflanze mit palmwedelähnlichen steifen Blättern; gedeiht auch in trockenen Räumen.   …   Universal-Lexikon

  • cycas — [sī′kas΄] n. [see CYCAD] any of a genus (Cycas) of cycads with leathery, dark green leaves and short, thick trunks, grown in warm climates for ornament …   English World dictionary

  • Cycas — Cy cas (s? k?s), n. [Of uncertain origin. Linn[ae]us derives it from one of the obscure Greek words. ] (Bot.) A genus of trees, intermediate in character between the palms and the pines. The pith of the trunk of some species furnishes a valuable… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Cycas — (C. L., Sagopalme), Pflanzengattung aus der Familie der Cycadeaceae; Arten: C. circinnalis u. C. revoluta, schöne, in ihrem Entwickeln u. Wachsthum viel Eigenthümliches zeigende Gewächse, in Ostindien, China, Japan, u. wild in Gärten, aus deren… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Cycas — L. (Sagopalme), Gattung der Cykadazeen, niedrige Bäume mit säulenförmigem, mit den Blattresten dauernd bepanzertem Stamm, einfach gefiederten Blättern, in deren Mitte sich bei der weiblichen Pflanze die großen Fruchtzapfen entwickeln. Etwa 16… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Cycas — L., Pflanzengattg. der Zykadeen. C. circinālis L. (Sagopalme), Ostindien und Molukken, liefert eine geringe Sorte Sago; C. revolūta L. (Palmfarn [Abb. 380]), in China und Japan, bei uns in Handelsgärten der Blätter wegen kultiviert (Palmenzweige… …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

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