Cycad

Cycad, tropical plant of the cycas family, one of the most primitive living seed-bearing plants. They grow in warm climates. Many are cultivated for their ornamental foliage. The leaves grow from the top of a stem that may be underground, giving a palmlike appearance, and some cycads have been incorrectly called palms. The leaves of cycads are poisonous and fatal to livestock. The sago palm is a cycad whose stem provides the sago that is used in puddings. In South Africa the seeds of the bread palm are used to make a meal.