Golden Cycad

おうごん そてつ

Golden Cycad

Sotesu is the Japanese name for a plant common on the Okinawan islands. In English, the family is known as Cycad. It is the same kind of plant from which children used to make bug carriers. Weaving the pointed fronds together, islanders were able to make useful carrying cages for kabuta beetles and semi (cicedas).
The roots were also useful as a last ditch food source.

Every May, a specific version of the Cycad turns a golden color for a short time.On Kume Island, the neighborhoods of Nishime, Ota, and Gushikawa have versions of these unique plants.