The Best Companion Plants for Your Cycads: Create a Prehistoric Paradise That Turns Heads

Listen, if you’ve ever stood in front of a majestic Encephalartos and felt like a tiny human next to a living dinosaur, you’re my kind of people. Cycads are the rock stars of South African gardens — ancient, dramatic, and honestly a bit smug about surviving 280 million years. But here’s the secret nobody tells you: a cycad on its own is stunning… a cycad surrounded by the right companion plants? That’s next-level, neighbour-stopping, Instagram-exploding territory.

At Hilltop Garden Services, we’ve planted hundreds of cycads from Wood’s holy grail specimens in Constantia to humble revolutas in Pretoria North, and every single time the ones that steal the show are the ones with clever companions. So today I’m spilling the tea (and the soil) on the absolute best plants to pair with your cycads — plants that make them look taller, healthier, and more prehistoric while being zero drama to maintain. Get ready, because your garden is about to go viral.

Why Companion Planting with Cycads is Pure Genius

Cycads are divas — they hate wet feet, love perfect drainage, and throw tantrums if the soil’s too rich. Most traditional garden plants want the opposite. So when you pair them with companions that share their “tough love” requirements, everyone wins:

• Better drainage → happier cycad roots

• Weed suppression → less work for you

• Visual drama → your garden looks like a Jurassic Park set (without the velociraptors)

• Pollinator attraction → bonus birds and butterflies for the ‘gram

Plus, the texture contrast is chef’s kiss — glossy cycad fronds against soft grasses or spiky succulents? People literally stop their cars.

Top 10 Companion Plants That Make Cycads Look Like Royalty

1. Plectranthus (Spurflowers) – The Ultimate Underplanting Queen

These indigenous beauties are the little black dress of cycad companions.

• ‘Mona Lavender’ or Plectranthus saccatus form perfect mounds under your cycad’s crown

• They flower for months (purple, pink, or white)

• Tolerate dry shade like champions

• We planted these under a row of Encephalartos lehmannii in Somerset West — the client sent us a video of bees going berserk. 120k views on Facebook!

2. Dietes (Wild Iris) – Tough, Elegant, Zero Fuss

Dietes grandiflora or bicolor are basically the South African version of bulletproof.

• Strappy leaves echo cycad fronds but softer

• White or yellow flowers on repeat

• Survive drought, flood, and neglect

• Perfect for creating rhythm around a big Encephalartos altensteinii

3. Restios – For That Proper Fynbos Vibe

If you want your cycad to feel like it’s chilling in the Cape 200 million years ago, plant restios.

• Elegantia or Thamnochortus insignis give airy, grass-like texture

• They move in the wind — pure magic on video

• Zero water once established

• One Hilltop client in Noordhoek paired Elegantia with E. horridus — looks like a dragon’s lair

4. Aloes – The Spiky Sidekick Your Cycad Deserves

Aloes and cycads are basically besties from the Mesozoic era.

• Aloe ferox or aristata create fiery orange contrast

• Same water and soil needs

• Birds and sunbirds go mad for the flowers

• Winter colour when everything else is sleeping

5. Crassula ovata (Jade Plant) – The Money Plant That Actually Makes You Look Rich

Mini jade plants or the big boys — both work.

• Sculptural shapes mirror cycad trunks

• Red edges in winter for extra drama

• Basically impossible to kill

• We used dwarf varieties around a rare Encephalartos woodii clone — client calls it his “million-rand corner”

6. Bulbine frutescens – The Orange Fireworks Show

These little succulents explode with orange or yellow flowers on long stalks.

• Perfect groundcover between cycads

• Loved by bees and butterflies

• Flowers 365 days a year in warm areas

• Looks insane on slow-motion video with bees

7. Ornamental Grasses – Movement and Texture Heaven

Try:

• Aristida junciformis (Ngongoni three-awn)

• Eragrostis curvula (weeping love grass)

• They sway around cycad trunks like the whole garden is breathing

• Golden seed heads catch the light — pure gold for sunset photos

8. Agapanthus – The Classic That Never Fails

The humble agapanthus is the perfect “filler” around cycads.

• Blue or white flower heads in summer

• Strappy leaves all year

• Tougher than your ex

• We planted dwarf varieties around E. natalensis — looks like a purple skirt on a dinosaur

9. Euphorbias – For That Alien Planet Look

Euphorbia tirucalli (pencil plant) or E. ingens (candelabra tree) for big drama.

• Architectural shapes contrast perfectly with cycad symmetry

• Drought tolerance level: god tier

• One client in Pretoria North has E. woodii surrounded by pencil euphorbias — people think it’s a movie set

10. Groundcover Vygies – The Living Carpet

Lampranthus or Drosanthemum species open neon flowers when the sun hits.

• Turn bare soil into a rainbow carpet

• Close down at night — perfect time-lapse content

• We did this under a row of Encephalartos ferox in Ballito — the video hit 300k views!

The Golden Rules for Cycad Companion Success

1. Never plant anything that needs rich soil or lots of water — your cycad will sulk

2. Raise the bed slightly for extra drainage (cycads hate wet feet)

3. Mulch with gravel or bark — suppresses weeds and looks prehistoric

4. Group in odd numbers for natural flow

5. Leave space — cycads grow slowly but they DO grow

The Viral Cycad Garden Formula

Want your garden to break the internet?

1. One statement cycad (the bigger the better)

2. Layer of mid-height companions (Plectranthus or Dietes)

3. Carpet of groundcover (vygies or Bulbine)

4. One contrasting colour pop (orange aloe or red-hot poker)

5. Film it at golden hour with bees

6. Post with #CycadGardenGoals and tag @HilltopGardenServices

We’ve had three clients go properly viral doing exactly this.

Ready to Make Your Cycad the Star?

At Hilltop Garden Services, we don’t just plant cycads — we create living museum pieces that make people gasp. Whether you’ve got a rare Wood’s cycad that needs the royal treatment or a humble revoluta that deserves better friends, we’ve got you.

Drop us a photo of your cycad and we’ll tell you exactly what companions will make it pop (for free, because we’re obsessed).

Your prehistoric paradise is waiting. Let’s make it legendary.