Eastern Cape giant cycad

This cycad grows up to seven metres (23 ft) tall and may be branched or unbranched. The leaves are straight or curved backwards and up to three metres (9.8 ft) in length. The leaflets are rigid and fairly broad with one or both margins toothed. There are no prickles at the base of the leaf which distinguishes it from E. natalensis. There are usually two to five greenish-yellow cones up to 50 centimetres (20 in) long, the female scales covered with protuberances. The cones are poisonous to humans. The seeds are scarlet and up to four centimetres (1.6 in) long.

This species is widespread in the Eastern Cape and south-western KwaZulu-Natal provinces of South Africa. It favours sites near the coast including open scrub, steep rocky slopes, evergreen forests in valleys and river banks. It also occurs inland at a higher altitude in isolated sites in the Amatola Mountains. The individual growing in the Palm House at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK is considered to be the oldest potted plant in the world, having arrived there in 1775. Other individuals have also reached a great age, with the one in Lednice Greenhouse, Czech Republic estimated to be 300 to 600 years old.