Native to Zimbabwe and Mozambique.  Its habitat consists of grasslands, sloping granite hills or mountain forest regions.  These areas get moderate to heavy annual rainfall. In Kampala, this tree can be found within Uganda Golf Course among other places.

Manica cycad has a stem up to 1.5 m, and 30 cm diameter. They have long leaves and stout trunks.

BARK: light colored, possessing fine white hair, or more dark in appearance with dark woody scales.  

LEAVES: olive to dark green, narrowly ovate-lanceolate to oblong in outline, 100-190 cm, with c. 60 pairs of pinnae, lower pairs reduced to prickles. Largest pinnae 12-15 × 2-2.5 cm, lanceolate-ovate, ending in a forward directed spine and 1 or 2 spines on the upper and lower margins

FLOWERS:

FRUIT: Both the male and female cones are green, becoming slightly yellow on maturity. Plants produce up to 3 female cones, almost 1 m in length and can produce 1-4 male cones together, but occasionally as many as 12.
Male cones 1-4 together, 25-60 cm tall on a peduncle of 5-15 cm. Scales slightly spaced when mature, sub rectangular. Female cone c. 30-45 × 20-25 cm, loosely woolly. Seeds more or less ovoid, 2.5-3.5 cm.

An ornamental