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Plants & Books Previously Available, Now On Back Order (Not Currently Available)
Please note that none of these plants or offerings are currently available. They may become available in the future, but please do not order any of them now, as we can not fulfill these orders.
Please also note that these prices are not necessarily applicable for future purchase of plants either online or in the nursery, because plant prices and foreign exchange rates change all the time.
Zamia obliqua is an arborescent Zamia that can grow to 6 meters tall and it occurs at sea level from the Cabo Corrientes area in the Choco all the way into Panama and at 200 to 400 meters near Quibdo, the largest town in the Choco. It grows in a variety of soils from the sandy coastal soils of Bahia Solano to the heavy latosol clays of the Quibdo areas.
This species has great horticultural potential with its distinctive smooth slender trunk, and apple green shiny leaves with leaflets inserted at oblique angles. It produces leaves simultaneously and crowns on old plants sometimes branch and can carry up to 20 leaves at a time. The cones are large and produce abundant seed. In habitat, Zamia obliqua is under increased threat from logging and development.
We only have a few of these rare plants.
Zamia montanaThis ultra-rare Colombian species grows in small populations at the highest elevation of any neotropical cycad, ranging from 1500 to 2500 meters above sea level, where the temperature can go down to 2 C and below. This cold tolerance makes Z. montana a plant with unique horticultural potential as it can be grown outdoors in subtropical areas, and potentially in temperate areas with shelter.
The plants we have are 5-6 years old. This easy-to-grow plant is particularly attractive when it flushes because of the rich golden hues in its leaves.
In its natural habitat some plants live on top of hills and in cliffs in full sun while others live in the depth of cool and moist forests. We are working with a Colombian exporter to propagate seeds from artificially-grown specimens. Hopefully, this will take pressure off wild populations.
We have obtained these artificially propagated plants under pertinent CITES and USDA regulations and will ship them bare-root to interested collectors.
Zamia splendens Coning-Sized PlantsZamia splendens is named for its shining leaves (‘splendens’ in Latin), which have a strikingly shiny appearance. This is a beautiful plant, with red emergent leaves, native to the rain forests of Chiapas, Mexico. It was described by Bart Schutzman in 1984. It does well in mixed shade, and is frost-tolerant in temperate zones, when given overhead protection.
Zamia standleyi Coning-Sized PlantsNamed in honor of Paul Standley, this cycad has long, lanceolate leaflets with marginal teeth. It comes from the rainforests of Eastern Chiapas, Mexico, and Honduras. This plant grows well in tropical and subtropical climantes, and can survive in temperate zones in a sheltered location, able to withstand frost.
Zamia amplifolia is from the Choco region of Colombia. Its name “amplifolia” refers to its very large leaves, and leaflets -- It has leaves up to 2 meters (6+ feet) long carrying up to 12 very large leaflets up to 60 cm (2 feet) long. It is known from only four collections over the past 125 years.
Z. amplifolia is the only Zamia with prominently grooved leaflets that also has leaflets with an entire margin. It is similar in leaves to Z. dressleri a species from Central Panama. However, Z. amplifolia has been know to have a trunk up to 2.5 meters tall while Z. dressleri always has a subterranean stem.
Zamia amplifolia grows as an understory plant in the tropics at a relatively high elevation (1200 meters—nearly 4000 feet), with estimated rainfall between 120 to 150 inches per year. This area has night temperatures of 60-70 degrees F and daytime temperatures of 75-85 F. According to the World List, this species is so rarely collected that it is hard to assess…very rare… existing populations …threatened by habitat destruction for coffee plantations
Zamia amplifolia has great value as an ornamental plant, with its large leaves set in an underground stem and its new leaves being of a rich gold color.
We will be bringing in one year old seedlings, each with at least one leaf. These plants have 10 inch tall leaves, with leaflets 6-8 inches long, according to our supplier.
This ultra-rare Colombian species grows in small populations at the highest elevation of any neotropical cycad, ranging from 1500 to 2500 meters above sea level, where the temperature can go down to 2 C and below. This cold tolerance makes Z. montana a plant with unique horticultural potential as it can be grown outdoors in subtropical areas, and potentially in temperate areas with shelter.
The plants we have are 12+ months old, slightly younger than the plants pictured above, which are 2-3 years old. This easy-to-grow plant is particularly attractive when it flushes because of the rich golden hues in its leaves. In their natural habitat some plants live on top of hills and in cliffs in full sun while others live in the depth of cool and moist forests.
We are working with a Colombian exporter to propagate seeds from artificially-grown specimens. Hopefully, this will take pressure off wild populations. These artificially propagated plants are being imported under pertinent CITES and USDA regulations.
These rare seedlings are available at the price listed below, plus shipping to your door.
Special Seedling Import from MozambiqueAs part of our ongong efforts to bring you new and rare species, we have been developing sources of supply in countries from which plants and seeds have not been readily available in the past. We do this by working with growers in those countries, in coordination with those countries' nature conservation officials. As you know, our goal is to support species preservation through propagation and conservation.
This past year, we worked successfully with growers and government officials in Mozambique, to bring in artificially propagated species to the U.S.A. of some of that country's native Encephalartos species.
Below, in the specimens now available, you will see the results of these efforts. So you can share in the propagation effort and to motivate your successful growing efforts, we are offering a special discount on multiple plant purchases.
Thank you for your consideration, and for support of preservation through growing these special plants.
With the weather heating up, we have some beautiful and rare plants on special this month. We are featuring 3 medium-sized species, and 2 seedling species.
1. Encephalartos caffer Plants-- These are seed-grown just pushing out new leaves this month, so we’ll be shipping your plant once leaves have hardened off. This month, we’re offering a 20% discount on this rare dwarf cycad with plumose leaves.
2. Cycas couttsiana Plants-- These are the extremely blue plants from Australia. They came in this spring in an import from Australia, and we’re offering them at a discount as well.
3. Encephalartos schaijesii Plants-- This extremely rare Central Africa grassland cycad is quite hard to come by here in the USA. We were able to import seeds some 3 years ago, and these are now reaching the point where we’re getting some nice growth.
4. Dioon califanoi Seedlings-- This keeled leaf Dioon from Oaxaca is among the most attractive of its genus. We’ve had some successful germination and want to share that success with you in the form of great pricing.
5. Encephalartos ituriensis Seedlings-- The Ituri Forest Giant Cycad has been incredibly hard to come by in the USA. We were able to import seeds a couple years back, and the resulting seedlings are now busting out of their liners, wanting to be potted up. Their growth is your benefit.
Sago Bulbs!--Cycas revoluta at a Great Price Big Discount for 5 Plant OrdersOne of our suppliers had a problem, that may be your opportunity. A container load of large crates of Cycas revoluta (Sago Palm) bulbs landed at the Port of Los Angeles, and 3 of these crates could not make it in the truck! So we've been asked to sell these, quickly. They are all approximately 6" in diameter, and larger in height.
We are now accepting pre-orders for this species, direct from Thailand, with sizable caudexes, 15-18 inches tall.
This plant is distinguished by flat leaves and an incredibly unique bulbous base, which flares out, becoming broad and plate-like in older plants. Baseball-sized specimens of this plant sell for over $100 in Southern California. Above you will see some mature specimens, in a photo from one of our suppliers.
All plants are being imported in compliance with CITES and USDA regulations. Plants will be delivered with roots and leaves trimmed off, complete with instructions for re-establishing the plants into healthy rooted and leafed-out specimens.
The Sale Price, when posted, is available for pre-orders only. Once these plants have been potted up in our greenhouse, the Regular Price applies.
We are now accepting pre-orders for this species, direct from Thailand, with sizable caudexes, 9-18 inches tall.
This is a rare and newly discovered species of Cycas found in the mountains of northern Thailand. As you can see from the mature specimen pictured here, the leaves form a beautiful blue canopy. I am not aware of any specimens in this size currently available in the U.S., so this is a special opportunity.
All plants are being imported in compliance with CITES and USDA regulations. Plants will be delivered with roots and leaves trimmed off, complete with instructions for re-establishing the plants into healthy rooted and leafed-out specimens.
These are currently out of stock.
Cycas Thai Sp. 'Silver Form'(Please click on image to see detail of this mature plant with newly emerged leaves.)
This is the rare silver form variety of Cycas siamensis. Its emergent leaves are silver in color, as you can see from the image here. The leaves retain much of this coloring over time. I am not aware of any specimens in this size currently available in the U.S., so this is a special opportunity.
All plants are being imported in compliance with CITES and USDA regulations. Plants will be delivered with roots and leaves trimmed off, complete with instructions for re-establishing the plants into healthy rooted and leafed-out specimens.
In North America, these areas (USDA Zones 7 to 11) stretch from the Mid-Atlantic states to the South, include most of Texas and the Southwest, and encompass the entire West Coast, up to western Canada. Many parts of the British Isles, Australia, and New Zealand experience similar conditions.
In a nutshell, any gardener who lives in an area where winter temperatures do not go below 0° Fahrenheit (–18° Celsius) will want this book, and curious gardeners in colder zones may well want to test these select plants in their local microclimates.
This remarkable volume shows both the habit and details - flower, fruit, bark, fall color - of more than 400 species and describes hundreds more cultivars and varieties. Certain genera offer myriad hybrids and selections, and photographs of many of the best of these are included as well -nearly 40 named crapemyrtles, a dozen teaolives, and 11 loropetalums. In all, more than 1400 photographs join with the authoritative text to bring the plants to life.
A southern gardener himself, Dirr begins his book with reflections on his successes and failures in 22 years of gardening in the red soils of Georgia. No gardener will want to miss a “sneak peak” into this great plantsman’s lush garden.
From Abelia to Ziziphus, gardeners will encounter many new and unfamiliar plants that thrive in warmer climates. Suggestions for cultivation and landscape use are based on Dirr’s extensive experience. He gives special attention to hardy palms that can survive outside the subtropics.
The book also reflects the author’s inimitable personality, which holds nothing back when a plant deserves outright acclaim (“If prescriptions could be written for perfect garden plants, this species would come close to filling the order”), backhanded praise (“Use for accent, for novelty, or to drive visitors loony”), or frank condemnation (“Splays to the point of no redemption with time”).
448 pp, 1438 color photos, 1 map, 8 1/2 x 11", hardcover
ISBN: 0-88192-525-X
Publication Date: January 2002
A Field Guide to Tropical Plants of Asia By David H. Engel and Suchart PhummaiA Field Guide to Tropical Plants of Asia is an excellent companion for the traveler, backpacker, plant hobbyist, or botanist interested in learning about tropical plants, whether studying them in Indonesian rain forests or the glass houses of an American botanical garden.
Using his own experience as a New Jersey native trying to familiarize himself with the local Thai flora, Engel has organized this book for ultimate ease of use. More than 300 color photos—both close-ups and habitat shots—accompany the listings and provide a key piece of the identification process.
Gardening in the Tropics By R. E. Holttum and Ivan EnochThis unique encyclopedic treatment of tropical gardening was written specifically for Malaysia and Singapore, but it will be a valuable resource for gardeners in the American tropics as well. Included are detailed, illustrated listings of herbaceous plants, shrubs and climbers, trees and palms, foliage plants, orchids, vegetables, and fruit trees.
The adventurous gardener will find inspiration and challenges in the distinctive plant materials presented. The book assumes the mostly wet tropical climate of Malaysia, and adjustments will have to be made for local conditions of Hawaii, southern California, and Florida. However, the authors—distinguished botanists with much experience in the tropics—provide useful guidance on the requirements for each plant.
The breathtaking illustrated spectrum of tropical plants will be of extraordinary interest not only to sophisticated gardeners in tropical areas but to greenhouse enthusiasts everywhere.
Gardens of the Sun By Trevor NottleIn this book ideally suited for California gardeners, the author speaks with exuberant passion to all gardeners who, because of their geographic location, are frustrated in their yearnings to re-create the lush glories of English and European gardens.
Nottle, who lives and gardens in Australia, asserts that gardens thoughtfully designed to perform in the hot dry summers and mild wet winters of Mediterranean climates can equal or surpass the beauty and charm of classic European woodland and cottage gardens. He recommends that plants be carefully selected from a world palette of dry-climate “specialists,” and he provides practical information on lean-soil preparation and improvement; water gardening and water conservation; use of native plants; and using shade, color, and texture for cooling effects in the garden.
He includes excellent appendices on seeds, sources, and societies, and a wide ranging bibliography. Gardens of the Sun is a delightful book for its writing as well as its vision.
208 pp, 113 color photos, 2 b/w illus., 7 1/2 x 9 3/4", hardcover
ISBN: 0-88192-365-6
Publication Date: October 1996
The Looking-Glass Garden: Plants and Gardens of the Southern Hemisphere By Peter ThompsonPart travelogue, part inspiration, and part practical gardening guide, this innovative book is certain to turn orthodox views of the garden upside down. Few who seek excitement and drama in their gardening will regret accompanying Peter Thompson into the looking-glass garden.
To the eyes of traditional gardeners, the plants and gardens of the Southern Hemisphere seem to spring directly from the pages of Lewis Carroll. Colours are brighter, shapes more exotic, and names unfamiliar: boobiallas, cockies tongues, lion’s ears, and quandongs, to name but a few. Although the floras of countries as diverse as South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Chile are strikingly different, the plants within them are surprisingly complementary. They offer adventurous gardeners a series of palettes, forms, textures, and effects that are unparalleled in the familiar, comfortable garden offerings of the North. Just as Alice passed through the looking-glass to a world where nothing was as expected, Peter Thompson’s looking-glass garden leads readers into a world of unfamiliar plants and exciting possibilities, if only gardeners will make the most of them.
A thorough review of this vast array of Southern Hemisphere plants would take many volumes, and the author quite sensibly focuses on the role these dramatic plants can play in gardens. Touching on nearly 1500 plants in all, he emphasizes garden situations and garden categories, and seeks to dispel the notion that these “foreign” plants are unreasonably difficult to grow. Indeed, he explains that gardeners in difficult situations may benefit from the ability of many plants to thrive despite drought, low soil fertility, and high temperatures. Case studies and comprehensive lists of hardiness zones provide further guidance for using Southern Hemisphere plants in cooler, more frost-prone areas. Above all, Thompson seeks to extend every gardener’s range of garden plants and to make us all think differently about how to use them in our gardens.
451 pp, 151 color photos, 4 maps, 6 x 9", hardcover
ISBN: 0-88192-499-7
$39.95, plus shipping and handling
Publication Date: April 2001
The Subtropical Garden By Jacqueline Walker Photographs by Gil HanlyThe subtropical garden is a garden of luxuriant foliage, dramatic form, and vibrant color. Lush in undergrowth, it is spiked above with palm or tree fern fronds, punctuated by suspended epiphytes, with a backdrop of climbing vines and a foreground of blazing bromeliads. In its drier areas it flaunts sword-like plants in bold clumps, thick-fleshed aloes and swollen succulents. It is a dynamic, year-round garden, where warmth makes for rapid growth.
Illustrated with numerous superb color photographs, this beautiful book will be welcomed by innovative gardeners who delight in exotic plants. The Subtropical Garden offers essential information on a tempting selection of palms, bamboos, flowering trees, climbers, shrubs, foliage plants, perennials, orchids, bromeliads, ferns and water plants.
Although intended specifically for the fortunate gardeners of zones 8 and above, the information provided can allow adventurous gardeners in colder climates to incorporate subtropical elements by careful site selection, or by planting in containers so that plants of moderate size can be brought indoors during northern winters.
176 pp, 197 color photos, 8 1/2 x 11", paperback
ISBN: 0-88192-359-1
Publication Date: September 1996
The Tropical Look: An Encyclopedia of Dramatic Landscape Plants By Robert Lee RiffleThe Tropical Look is a truly unique compendium of nearly 2000 plants that evoke languorous landscapes of swaying palms, dripping banana leaves, and vibrant frangipani blossoms. It is meant primarily for gardeners who live in USDA hardiness zones 8 and higher, but gardeners who live in cooler zones will find many plants of interest, though they may want to treat them as annuals, greenhouse, or “die-back” plants. Each plant entry gives complete information as to how much cold a plant can stand and whether a given plant will spring back from its roots.
More than 400 stunning photographs show tropical-looking plants in all their glory, and the A-to-Z encyclopedia represents every category of tropical planting, including trees, bamboos, palms, ferns, perennials, shrubs, water plants, vines, and much more. The author has even included cacti, succulents, and xeric plants for a tropical feeling in dry settings. This goundbreaking encyclopedia of lush plants will tempt even more gardeners into trying their hand at the game.
524 pp, 409 color photos, 7 figures, 8 1/2 x 11", hardcover
ISBN: 0-88192-422-9
Publication Date: August 1998
Tropicals By Gordon CourtrightNow available in paperback, this pictorial encyclopedia illustrates and briefly describes over 500 tropical trees, shrubs, and vines. Since it shows mature plants in landscape settings it is a perfect planning resource for gardeners in Hawaii, southern California and Florida, and similar tropical or subtropical areas. It is used by greenhouse gardeners everywhere who wish to experiment with this treasure trove of exotic plants, and it is a useful companion for travelers in the tropics who need a guide to identify the striking and unfamiliar plants they encounter.
Gordon Courtright was a respected California nurseryman; he also wrote Trees and Shrubs for Temperate Climates.
Tropical & Exotic BooksOur passion is tropical and subtropical plants, and we want to share that passion with you!
So, here are some great books on tropical and subtropical plants and gardening. Among these are books describing plants found in the warm regions of our planet--the tropics, the subtropics and mediterranean climate zones. A number of these books also describe gardening methods in these climate zones.
This is the cross between Encephalartos woodii and Encephalartos natalensis. E. woodii is considered by some to be the world's rarest plant, with only one specimen ever having been found in the wild. E. natalensis is a plant in the same complex. By pollinating a female E. natalensis cone with pollen from E. woodii, the resulting offspring have characteristics of both plants. Once that plant matures, a female plant may be subsequently pollenated with E. woodii pollen to create a plant which is 3/4 woodii, and 1/4 natalensis.
This is truly a magnificent plant, as the specimen pictured above shows!
See Photos, Prices and Info on the Auction Plants These are the plants we've uploaded, as of Monday evening, February 2. Please note that if you want to purchase any of these auction plants at the "Buy It Now" price, you are eligible for a 20% discount, if you purchase before Saturday, February 7, at which time the plants will be released for auction. If you want to exercise your "Buy It Now" 20% discount, enter the Coupon Code BuyItNow20 when you get to your Shopping Cart.
WHAT
IS CAUDEX SIZE?
You’ll
notice we list and price cycads by caudex size. The caudex is a
cycad’s woody, bulblike trunk, and caudex size is a good measure of
cycad age. The chart below can give you a rough idea of how this
translates to pot size.
Approximate Caudex Size
Container Size
Up to 1 Inch
1-2 Gallon
1 Inch to 3 Inch
3-5 Gallon
3 Inches to 7 Inches
15 Gallon
7 Inches and Up
24 Inch Box
IMPORTANT! To verify an item is in stock, please click the "Add to Cart" button. If "Add to Cart" button is not present, the item may not be in stock.
Cycads are sold for domestic USA use only. If you plan to export cycads or cycad seeds, we sell them with the understanding that you will obtain the necessary permits.
