Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Restrepo's Chigua (Chigua restrepoi)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Restrepo's Chigua, Chigua.

More about restrepo's chigua

About Restrepo's Chigua

Chigua restrepoi · also called Restrepo's Chigua, Chigua · tropical

Chigua restrepoi is a critically endangered Colombian cycad from wet tropical forests of the Chocó and Antioquia regions. It produces a small trunk or largely subterranean caudex and bright green pinnate fronds adapted to deep shade. One of the rarest cycads on Earth, it demands warm, humid, shaded conditions. All parts are severely toxic to pets and humans.

Cold limit: USDA 11-12 · RHS H1a (18–30°C)

What restrepo's chigua's hardiness rating actually means

Restrepo's Chigua is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1a means: Tropical — needs a heated room or greenhouse; no frost tolerance whatsoever. On the US scale that maps to USDA 11-12 — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly above about 15 °C (warm, never cold). Restrepo's Chigua has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for restrepo's chigua as it gets too cold:

Below about above about 15 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can restrepo's chigua go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above above 15 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when restrepo's chigua can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1a figure above.

Restrepo's Chigua hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is restrepo's chigua cold hardy?

Restrepo's Chigua is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Restrepo's Chigua can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 11-12); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature restrepo's chigua can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly above about 15 °C (warm, never cold). Restrepo's Chigua has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

What hardiness zone is restrepo's chigua?

Restrepo's Chigua is rated USDA 11-12 and RHS H1a — Tropical — needs a heated room or greenhouse; no frost tolerance whatsoever.

Can restrepo's chigua survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above above 15 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to restrepo's chigua below its minimum temperature?

Below about above about 15 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.