Cycadatae

The Cycadatae or Cycadopsida) are a class of plants that look similar to palm trees or tree ferns.

They are characterized by their simple stems, more or less fleshy, with little secondary growth in thickness, and which can appear branched. Well-developed roots, some with negative geotropism, that is, they tend to come to the surface (coraloid roots). Leaves pinnate or bipinnate, form a rosette at the end of the stem, each year a new whorl of leaves is formed and the oldest are shed, leaving scars along the stem.

Dioecious, they present strobile-type sexual structures, generally in a terminal position.

The members of this class reached their maximum development in the Mesozoic. Currently, some 160 species survive, grouped into 11 genera, generally in intertropical zones. They are used in gardening as ornamental plants.