| Gold dust wattle | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Clade: | Mimosoid clade |
| Genus: | Acacia |
| Species: | A. acinacea |
| Binomial name | |
| Acacia acinacea | |
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| Occurrence data fromAVH | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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Acacia acinacea, commonly known asgold dust wattle,[2]wreath wattle orround-leaf wattle.[3] is a species of flowering plant in the familyFabaceae and isendemic to south-eastern continental Australia. It is a bushy or straggling shrub with asymmetric, narrowly oblong to broadly egg-shapedphyllodes with the narrower end towards the base, flowers arranged in a spherical heads 4.0–4.5 mm (0.16–0.18 in) in diameter with 8 to 20 flowers, and a spirally coiled to twistedpods up to 3.0–4.5 mm (0.12–0.18 in) long.
Acacia acinacea is a bushy or straggling, open shrub that typically grows to a height of around 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in). Its phyllodes are asymmetric, narrowly oblong to lance-shaped or egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, 4–15 mm (0.16–0.59 in) long and 2 to 8 mm (0.079 to 0.315 in) wide. There is a small point on the end of the phyllodes, off-set from the tip. It blooms, usually prolifically, between July and November producing one or two spherical heads in each leaf axil, the heads with a diameter of 4 to 4.5 mm (0.16 to 0.18 in) containing 8 to 20 golden-yellow flowers. The pods are spirally coiled to twisted, 3.0–4.5 mm (0.12–0.18 in) wide andglabrous, with a hard outer surface. The seeds are shiny, more or less oblong and 4 to 5 mm (0.16 to 0.20 in) with a club-shapedaril that is up to half as long as the seed.[3][4][5][6][7]
The species was first formally described by the botanistJohn Lindley in 1838 as part ofThomas Mitchell's workThree Expeditions into the interior of Eastern Australia.[8][9] Thespecific epithet,acinacea, derives from the Latin for a short Persian sword (acinaces) and references the shape of the phyllodes.[6]
Gold dust wattle is widespread from nearMelrose in South Australia, including in theMount Lofty Ranges,Kangaroo Island and southernFlinders Ranges, throughout most ofVictoria, and south from theGilgandra district inNew South Wales. It is often found in hilly country and grows well in sand, sandy loam and gravelly soils as a part ofEucalyptus woodlands, woodland heath and open mallee scrubland communities.[3][4][5][6][7]
