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blue wattle, silver wattle

prickly moses, star acacia

Habit Shrubs or trees, erect, to 30 m. Twigs dark purplish brown to black, slightly flexuous, ridged, pruinose, densely puberulent. Shrubs or small trees, erect, to 5 m. Twigs dark reddish brown, not flexuous, prominently ridged, glabrous or pubescent.
Leaves

compound, 80–170 mm;

petiole 8–22 mm, densely puberulent, gland present, below proximalmost pinna pair, 0.5–1 mm diam., puberulent;

rachis gland between most pinna pairs;

pinnae 6–30 pairs, 15–55 mm, 2–7 mm between pinna pairs;

leaflets 15–70 pairs per pinna, blades linear, 2–5 × 0.4–0.8 mm, base cuneate, apex obtuse to acute, not apiculate, surfaces densely puberulent.

phyllodic; fascicled or whorled;

phyllode quadrangular, straight, linear, acicular, 5–20 × 0.5–1.5 mm, venation parallel, midvein prominent, minor veins not obvious, apex acuminate, sharp-pointed, surfaces mostly glabrous;

gland 1 (usually not obvious, disc-shaped), 3–6 mm distal to leaf base;

pulvinus absent.

Inflorescences

globose heads, densely flowered, 6–9 mm diam., in axillary pseudoracemes of 11–30 heads or terminal pseudopanicles of 1–15 pseudoracemes.

cylindrical spikes, densely flowered, 10–45 × 4–7 mm, solitary in leaf axils.

Peduncles

2–6 mm.

2–12 mm.

Flowers

5-merous, pale yellow to cream;

calyx 0.6–1.1 mm;

corolla 1.4–2 mm;

filaments 3.5–4.5 mm;

ovary glabrous.

5-merous, pale yellow;

calyx 0.5–0.8 mm;

corolla 1.1–1.6 mm;

filaments 2.2–3.2 mm;

ovary glabrous.

Legumes

flattened, oblong, 20–110 × 6–14 mm, constricted between some seeds.

flattened, linear, 20–90 × 2.7–5 mm, not constricted between seeds.

Seeds

aril light yellow, obovate, 2–3 mm, forming cap on seed.

aril light yellow, folded and thickened, forming cap on seed.

2n

= 26.

= 26.

Acacia dealbata

Acacia verticillata

Phenology Flowering winter, early spring. Flowering fall, winter.
Habitat Disturbed areas. Disturbed areas.
Elevation 0–300 m. (0–1000 ft.) 0–100 m. (0–300 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; se Australia [Introduced in North America; introduced also in s South America]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; se Australia (including Tasmania) [Introduced in North America]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Acacia dealbata is known from Butte, Los Angeles, Marin, Monterey, Napa, Riverside, Sacramento, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Acacia verticillata is known from Marin, Monterey, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, and Santa Clara counties.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 11. FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Caesalpinioideae (Mimosoid clade) > Acacia Fabaceae > subfam. Caesalpinioideae (Mimosoid clade) > Acacia
Sibling taxa
A. auriculiformis, A. baileyana, A. cultriformis, A. cyclops, A. decurrens, A. longifolia, A. mearnsii, A. melanoxylon, A. paradoxa, A. pycnantha, A. redolens, A. retinodes, A. saligna, A. verticillata
A. auriculiformis, A. baileyana, A. cultriformis, A. cyclops, A. dealbata, A. decurrens, A. longifolia, A. mearnsii, A. melanoxylon, A. paradoxa, A. pycnantha, A. redolens, A. retinodes, A. saligna
Synonyms Mimosa verticillata
Name authority Link: Enum. Hort. Berol. Alt. 2: 445. (1822) (L’Héritier) Willdenow: Sp. Pl. 4: 1049. (1806)
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