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black wattle

golden wreath wattle, orange wattle

Habit Shrubs or small trees, erect, to 10 m. Twigs dark purplish brown to black, slightly flexuous, ridged, puberulent. Shrubs or small trees, pendulous, to 6 m. Twigs bluish to purplish, slightly flexuous, slightly ridged, glabrous.
Leaves

compound, 50–140 mm;

petiole 5–30 mm, puberulent, gland present, below proximalmost pinna pair, 0.7–1.5 mm diam., puberulent;

rachis glands scattered, with some between pinna pairs (at pinna pair nodes and internodes);

pinnae 7–31 pairs, 15–70 mm, 3–7 mm between pinna pairs;

leaflets 20–70 pairs per pinna, blades linear, 1.5–3.5 × 0.5–0.8 mm, base cuneate, apex obtuse, not apiculate, surfaces puberulent.

phyllodic;

phyllode flat, straight to slightly curved, linear to narrowly elliptic, 70–250 × 6–25 mm, venation pinnate, midvein prominent, minor veins faint, apex narrowly acuminate, apiculate, surfaces glabrous;

gland 1, 0–3 mm distal to pulvinus (obvious, disciform);

pulvinus 1–3.5 mm.

Inflorescences

globose heads, densely flowered, 5–9 mm diam., in axillary pseudoracemes of 20–35 heads or terminal pseudopanicles of 1–10 pseudoracemes.

globose heads, densely flowered, 8–12 mm diam., in pseudoracemes of 2–10 heads, 5–40 mm, solitary in distal leaf axils.

Peduncles

4–9 mm.

5–15 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, golden yellow;

calyx 1–2 mm;

corolla 2.6–3.4 mm;

filaments 5–6 mm;

ovary glabrous.

Legumes

flattened, linear, 30–140 × 4–8 mm, slightly constricted between seeds.

flattened, linear, 80–140 × 5–8 mm, constricted between seeds.

Seeds

aril light yellow, obovate, 1–2 mm, forming cap on seed.

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

2n

= 26.

Acacia mearnsii

Acacia saligna

Phenology Flowering spring, early summer. Flowering fall–spring.
Habitat Disturbed areas. Disturbed areas.
Elevation 0–400 m. (0–1300 ft.) 0–600 m. (0–2000 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; se Australia [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; FL; NV; sw Australia [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Acacia mearnsii is known from Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, and Santa Barbara counties.

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

Acacia saligna is known from Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, and Ventura counties in California, Lee and Monroe counties in Florida, and Clark County in Nevada.

(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. dealbata, A. decurrens, A. longifolia, 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. verticillata
Synonyms Mimosa saligna
Name authority De Wildeman: Pl. Bequaert. 3: 61. (1925) — (as mearnsi) (Labillardière) H. L. Wendland: Comm. Acac. Aphyll., 26. (1820)
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