Sago palms are a valuable addition to Japanese-style landscapes, tropical gardens, courtyards and containers for porch and patio.
General: Sago palms (Cycas revoluta) are a geologically ancient genus, dating to the times of dinosaurs -- the Jurassic Period. Young sago palms are single-trunked, but with age, they can branch out into multiple trunks. Their feathery pinnate fronds are blush-green when immature; they eventually crown the fibrous brown trunk with four-foot fronds that become a rich dark-green color. Under ideal conditions, a single plant can have more than 100 stiff, decorative leaves. Remove dead or damaged fronds as needed. Propagate from seed or detached offsets. Few diseases or insects seriously affect the sago palm.
Size: The clumping plant can grow 4 to 6 feet tall.
Cultivation: Plant any time of the year in mild climate areas or in spring after the last frost, from 1-, 5- or 15-gallon or specimen-size containers, and use them singly or in groups of three. Construct a watering basin three times the diameter of the original container, and mulch with 2 inches of humus or compost. Sago palms tolerate high temperatures, drought, wind and cold weather down to freezing. They require full sun or partial shade in deep, well-drained soil with a pH of 6.5 to 7.0.
-- Source: "California Gardener's Guide" by Bruce and Sharon Asakawa (Cool Springs Press, $24.99)
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