Macrozamia johnsonii.
Family Zamiaceae > Subfamily Encephalartoideae.
Endemic to New South Wales.
The stem/trunk/caudex can be underground or up to 3 m high but is commonly around 1m.
A plant can have up to 150 glossy green leaves, initially erect then arched over.
The flat leaves can be up to 3 m long with a stalk up to 8 cm long.
Sometimes the dead leaves can remain at the base of the plant.
Leaves are once divided with up to 250 leaflets that are angled towards the leaf tip.
There are prominent white swellings where the leaflets meet the midrib.
Leaflets taper towards the base of the leaf and the lowest are reduced to spines.
The simple linear leaflets are flat, up to 20 cm long with sharp pointed tips.
Male plants can have up to 10 or more fusiform cones each up to 40 cm long and 10 cm wide.
The microsporophylls are up to 30 mm long with apical spines up to 5 cm long.
Female plants commonly have 3 or 4 cones but can have up to 6.
They are up to 65 cm long and can weigh up to 14 Kg.
Megasporophyll stalks and blades are each up to 70 mm long.
The end of the blade is up to 40 mm wide and the apical spines are up to 7 cm long.
Each cone can have up to 200 flattened, ovoid seeds up to 55 mm long covered with red flesh.
J.F.
