Add it to your home screen and it opens full screen: no browser bars, one tap away, and everything stays signed in. Free, nothing to download from an app store.
- Tap the Share button in your browser
- Scroll down and choose “Add to Home Screen”
- Open GrowSomeFood from your home screen
- Open your browser’s menu
- Choose “Add to Home screen” or “Install app”
- Open GrowSomeFood from your home screen
Sago Palm
A hugely popular 'palm' that is actually a deadly cycad - every part is toxic, the seeds most of all, and just one or two seeds can kill a dog. Recognize it, and keep it (especially its seeds) away from pets and children.
Safety notes DEADLY POISON, especially to dogs. Every part contains cycasin that causes severe liver failure; the SEEDS are the most poisonous, and eating just one or two can kill a dog. It is a very common landscape plant and houseplant that looks like a small palm but is a CYCAD. It is also toxic to cats and people. Keep it and especially its seeds away from pets and children. If a pet or person ingests any part, contact a vet or poison control / emergency services immediately.
Overview
The sago palm (Cycas revoluta) is one of the most popular landscape and houseplants in warm regions and garden centers - a handsome, tough, slow-growing rosette of stiff, feathery, dark green fronds that looks like a miniature palm. It is, in fact, not a palm at all but a cycad, a member of an ancient plant lineage older than the dinosaurs. And behind its easygoing good looks is a serious hazard: every part of the plant is poisonous, containing cycasin and related toxins that cause severe liver failure.
The gravest danger is to dogs, which are drawn to chew the plant and especially its large, bright reddish-orange seeds - the most toxic part of all. Eating just one or two seeds can be fatal to a dog, and it is toxic to cats and people as well. Because sago palms are so common - sold as patio plants, foundation shrubs, bonsai, and houseplants - this identification and safety guide exists to help you recognize one on sight and understand why it must be kept out of reach of pets and children (and why a home with a dog may be better off without one). If a pet or person ingests any part, especially a seed, treat it as an emergency and get help immediately.
The one thing to knowIt is, in fact, not a palm at all but a cycad, a member of an ancient plant lineage older than the dinosaurs.
Quick facts
For identification. Not a growing guide.
- Height
- 60 inRange: 24–120 in
- Spread
- 6 ftRange: 3–10 ft
- Cold
- Killed by frostdamaged below 20°F
- Heat
- Struggles above 110°F
- Life cycle
- Perennial, lives about 50 years
- Habitat
- Full sun · Part sun · Part shade, well-drained soil
Through the year
A field guide through time
Explore the stages to recognize this plant throughout its life.
Stage 1 of 3 · The recurring year
Palm-like rosette of stiff fronds (identify & avoid)
Mar to Oct, every year
Know this stage
-
A stiff, feathery 'palm' that is really a cycad
The sago palm forms a rosette of stiff, dark green, feathery (pinnate) fronds radiating from a stout, shaggy, cone-like trunk, looking much like a small palm - but it is a CYCAD, a different, ancient group of plants. Each frond has many narrow, needle-like, sharply pointed leaflets. It's sold everywhere as a landscape plant in warm climates and as a houseplant elsewhere. Learn it so you recognize it wherever pets and children might reach it.
-
Keep it - and any dropped material - away from pets and children
Because every part is toxic and dogs are especially at risk, keep sago palms out of reach of pets and young children, and promptly clean up any dropped leaflets or plant debris. Dogs in particular are drawn to chew the plant and its seeds, so the safest choice in a home with a dog is often not to keep one at all. Wear gloves when handling or trimming it, and wash afterward.
Months are typical seasonal windows; climate, variety, and plant age can shift them.
Hazards
Dog & Pet Attraction HazardSeverity High DisordernowSeason: year-roundA dog chewing the fronds, trunk, or seeds; seeds dropped within a pet's reach; a new puppy or dog in a home or yard that has a sago palm.
A dog chewing the fronds, trunk, or seeds; seeds dropped within a pet's reach; a new puppy or dog in a home or yard that has a sago palm.
If a dog ingests any part, treat as an immediate veterinary emergency - call a vet or animal poison control at once; the best protection is removing the plant from a dog's environment entirely.
Remove sago palms from yards and homes with dogs, or barrier them off completely; never leave seeds or trimmings accessible; supervise pets around any cycad.
A specific and common danger: dogs are strongly attracted to chew sago palms and their seeds, making this one of the most frequent causes of fatal plant poisoning in dogs - a small, appealing seed is enough to kill.
Poisoning by Ingestion (deadly, esp. seeds)Severity High DisordernowSeason: year-roundAny chewing or ingestion of the plant, especially the seeds; early signs in animals can include vomiting, drooling, diarrhea, and lethargy, progressing to liver failure - a medical emergency.
Any chewing or ingestion of the plant, especially the seeds; early signs in animals can include vomiting, drooling, diarrhea, and lethargy, progressing to liver failure - a medical emergency.
Suspected ingestion is an EMERGENCY - contact a veterinarian, animal poison control, or poison control / emergency services immediately; do not wait for symptoms, as prompt treatment is critical for the liver toxicity. There is no simple antidote; care is intensive and supportive.
Keep the plant and especially its seeds away from pets and children; clean up dropped leaflets, cones, and seeds promptly; wear gloves handling it; and in a household with a dog, consider not keeping one at all.
The hazard is severe liver-failure poisoning of people or animals: every part contains cycasin and related toxins, and the reddish-orange SEEDS are the most poisonous - eating even one or two can be fatal to a dog. It is toxic to cats and people as well.
Grower tips
Notes from growers, tagged with the zone they grow in. A person reads every post before it appears.
Nobody has posted about Sago Palm yet.
Free account. Your post shows your grower name and zone, never your email.