1359
Dioon edule
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Synonym |
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Family |
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Zamiaceae |
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Local name |
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English- Chestnut dioon |
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Distribution |
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Native to Mexico |
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Habitat |
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Tropical deciduous thorn
forests and oak woodlands |
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Uses |
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Foliages are poisonous to most mammals |
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Key botanical characters: D.
edule has a crown of pinnate
(i.e. feathered) leaves which measure around 135 cm long. Lateral budding is present and mucilage, or sap, is excreted from any cut surfaces on the plant body.
The plant has a large central medulla and
a single vascular bundle containing
the xylem, phloem and cambium.
Since the organism is slow-growing and xerophilous (i.e. drought-tolerant), only a small conduction
channel is needed, unlike other plants. Stomata are also present to aid in transpiration and assimilation and are associated with sporophylls. D. edule has three or four large
adventitious (i.e. abnormally positioned) roots surrounded by many smaller ones which harbor
small nodules containing tannins.
Roots are composed of large amounts of corky secondary tissue consisting of phellogen. It is often very difficult distinguish males and
females until they develop a cone.
Cones generally do not show a visual difference; however, cone intervals can
be used to determine the sex of the plant. Females usually have a much longer
cone interval than males, typically 10–52 years as compared to 2.8–8.8 years.  |
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