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Zamia furfuracea - splitting caudex

16 years ago

Hi there

This month long after the commencement of the wet season my Zamia furfuracea has developed in a week or so a dramatic longitudinal split through the caudex extending from below the soil level up to almost the apex of the growth centre.

I'm going to document here what happening with this plant, any comments are welcome.

The zamia has been planted on a very well drained soil.
Seems to make 4-5 flushes per year.

Mauricio

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Comments (5)

User
16 years ago
One of the revolutas that I had for many many years developed stem rot rather suddenly. It seemed to be doing fine then in the spring I noticed a large colony of ants in the trunk. At first I thought the ants must have caused the rotting to occur. But later realized the tissue started to rot and hollow out the trunk and then the ants moved in. (I attribute the initial damage to an overwatering in combination with cold winter weather.) I got rid of the ants and cleaned up the injury. Then, I did some research and discovered that most horticulturist today do not recommend sealing plant injuries but suggest letting them heal naturally--sunlight, drying out, and fresh air are better than trying to seal off the wound. Unfortunately, my plant died anyway; hope yours has a better fate. Good luck!
knnn
16 years ago
I have a small Zamia vasquezii that split this Spring, ( I raised the moisture level too quick once it had warmed up )

By keeping moisture off the caudex mine has just about healed over now, maybe you could rig something up to let things dry out a bit?

This Spring,

Now,
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That is not necessarily cold damage. If it were, it should be evident on all the leaves not only the lower ones. It could also be that the plant is recycling existing nutrients and in the process older leaves are sacrificed. I have seen this happen on plants that may be too small to withstand an extended dormant period, or if there is too long of a dormant period where the plant is not given an opportunity to avail itself of nutrients in the soil. A cycad caudex typically has a great capacity for storage of water and starch. A leafless plant can be maintained that way for a very long time. However, leaf support requires more than just sugar and water. Nutrients are needed for homeostasis. Zamias are more "tropical" than other cycad genera and so maybe are not as well equipped physiologically to cope with a long, cold, dry period. Encephalartos species on the other hand don't even blink in the same scenario. Now that it is in a warmer and sunnier spot, feed and water the way you normally would, and soon enough new leaves will grow and replace the old ones. Do not cut off anything that still has green in it. x
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houstonpat
16 years ago
This is not uncommon in Zamia, esp furfuracea. Usually the result, as you suspect of over watering and possibly over fertilizing. On my large Z. furfuracea the caudex split also. I cleared away all debris in the area of the split and sprayed it well with systemic fungicide. Now I make it an effort to not water it at all (we get 60" of rain a year anyway). I do not fertilize it. And, when I am spreading crushed limestone on plants that require it, I also spread some in the area of the split. I also maintain the best air circulation to help resist rot.
mauriciob
Original Author
16 years ago
Hi!
Thanks a lot for the messages, this zamia looks like took a big drink of water, this plant is outside in my garden. Has been raining A LOT due to hurricane Dean the past two weeks. And suddenly this amber coloured stuff came out from one side, and the caudex started to split exactly in two halves. The fronds seems to be fine. I'm going to apply the fungicide and put a little fan in front to see what happens. Thank you a lot.
mauriciob
Original Author
16 years ago
Hi.
This resin is still coming out of the caudex and sealing it.
The Fan helps to dry out the area.

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