Acacia cultriformis A.Cunn. ex G.Don, Gen. Hist . 2: 406 (1832); W.J.Hooker, Icon. Pl. 2: t. 170 (1837)
Knife-leaf Wattle , also Dog-tooth Wattle , Half-moon Wattle , Golden Glow Wattle
Shrub to c.4 m high. Branchlets normally lightly to conspicuously pruinose, glabrous. Phyllodes rather crowded, inequilateral, often triangular, broadest about the middle, with abaxial margin straight and adaxial margin markedly rounded or angled, 10–30 mm long, 5–15 mm wide, coriaceous, grey-green to glaucous, light green when young, glabrous; midrib central or exentric; lateral nerves not prominent; gland rather prominent, at or slightly below widest part of phyllode. Racemes prolific in upper axils; axes 1–5 cm long, sometimes significantly longer, glabrous; peduncles 2.5–5 mm long, glabrous; heads globular to shortly cylindrical, 13–40-flowered, bright golden. Flowers 5-merous; calyx gamosepalous. Pods narrowly oblong, raised over seeds, to 9 cm long, 5–8 mm wide, firmly chartaceous, often pruinose, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, oblong, 3.5–4.5 mm long, dull to slightly shiny, black; aril clavate.
Discontinuous from Narrandera, N.S.W., N to the Stanthorpe- Inglewood area, south-eastern Qld; naturalized in A.C.T. Grows in sand or clayey loam in Eucalyptus communities.
L. Pedley, Austrobaileya 1: 278 (1980), suggested that A. cultriformis and A. scapuliformis might best be treated as distinct subspecies. Specimens agreeing with the type of A. cultriformis are confined mainly to the Hunter R. area, N.S.W., and are characterised by globular, 13–20-flowered heads, and phyllodes 14–30 mm long and 5–8 mm wide with l:w = 3–4. The type of A. scapuliformis is encompassed by the more widespread entity which has obloid to shortly cylindrical, 30–40-flowered heads, and phyllodes 10–30 mm long and 6–15 mm wide with l:w = 1.5–2.5.
Seemingly related to A. semilunata which is distinguished especially by its branchlets normally hairy to some degree, phyllodes never angled along their adaxial margin, glands less prominent, heads always globular and narrower pods( 4–5 mm wide). Acacia pravissima sometimes superficially resembles A. cultriformis .
Widely cultivated; the cultivar ‘Austraflora Cascade’ has a loose, pendulous growth habit, reaches 0.3 m high and spreads to 2–4 m, fide W.R.Elliot & D.L.Jones, Encycl. Austral. Pl. 2: 37 (1982).
Type of accepted name
Hunter R., N.S.W., Aug. 1827, A.Cunningham 73 ; holo: K, fide L.Pedley, Austrobaileya 1: 277 (1980); iso: BM.
Synonymy
Racosperma cultriforme (A.Cunn. ex G.Don) Pedley, Austrobaileya 2: 347 (1987). Type:as for accepted name.
Acacia papuliformis A.Cunn. ex Loudon, Hort. Brit. 407 (1830), nom. nud. ; G.Don, Gen. Hist. 2: 405 (1832), pro syn. sub A. scapuliformis .
Acacia scapuliformis A.Cunn. ex G.Don, Gen. Hist. 2: 405 (1832). Type: Dumaresque R., N.S.W., 3 July 1827, A.Cunningham 72 ; lecto: K, fide L.Pedley, Austrobaileya 1: 278 (1980); isolecto: A, BM.
Acacia cultrata Paxton, Paxton’s Mag. Bot. 6: 259 (1839). Type: ‘Specimens in the greenhouse of Messrs. Rollison, Tooting and now blooming most exuberantly’; n.v. Judging from the description it is most probable that this name applies to A. cultriformis .
Acacia glaucophylla F.Cels, Ann. Fl. Pomone 1839- 1840: 93, pl. (1839); C.A.Lemaire, Hort. Universel 2: 234 (1841). Type: a cultivated specimen; n.v. , synonymy following N.C.Seringe, Fl. Jard. 3: 503 (1849).
Acacia glaucifolia A.& N.Baumann ex Meisn., in J.G.C.Lehmann, Pl. Preiss. 1: 14 (1844). Type: cultivated, Apr. 1842, A. & N.Baumann ; ?holo: STR (writing on label not in Meisner’s hand).
Acacia cultriformis var. albicans hort. ex Chopinet, Ann. Inst. Natl. Rech. Agron., Ser. B, Ann. Amelior. Pl. 1(4): 589 (1951), nom. inval. (no Latin description or diagnosis provided).
Acacia cultriformis var. glaucescens hort. ex Chopinet, Ann. Inst. Natl. Rech. Agron., Ser. B, Ann. Amelior. Pl . 1 (4): 589 (1951), nom. inval. (no Latin description or diagnosis provided).
Illustrations
W.J.Hooker, loc. cit. ; F.Cels, loc. cit. ; E.R.Rotherham et al. , Fl. & Pl. New South Wales & S Queensland 125 (1975); G.M.Cunningham et al. , Pl. W New South Wales 358 (1981); M.Simmons, Acacias Australia 113 (1981); T.Tame, Acacias SE Australia 170, fig. 192, pl. 192 (1992).
Representative collections
Qld: Bracker Ck, Stanthorpe- Inglewood road, W.J.F.McDonald 1176 (BRI). N.S.W.: 15 km by road W of West Wyalong, E.F.Constable 7273 (NSW, PERTH); about 2.5 km SE of Brogedah HS on road to Muswellbrook, B.R.Maslin 5924 (NSW, PERTH); 10 km from Jerrys Plain towards Denman, N.Hall H78/7 (NSW, PERTH); Hunter R. [area], A.Cunningham 103/1825 (BM, K, NY), 104/1825 (BM) and 87/1827 (A, BM, K).
(BRM)
The information presented here originally appeared on the WATTLE CD-ROM which was jointly published by the Australian Biological Resources Study, Canberra, and the Department of Parks and Wildlife, Perth; it was produced by CSIRO Publishing from where it is available for purchase. The WATTLE custodians are thanked for allowing us to post this information here.
