Acacia ensifolia Pedley, Contr. Queensland Herb. 4: 2 (1969)
Tree to 9 m high, often with several trunks; crown spreading. Branchlets often pruinose, glabrous. Phyllodes normally pendulous, linear to linear-elliptic, straight to slightly recurved, 15–27 cm long, commonly 3–8 mm wide, acuminate, coriaceous, not rigid, green to grey-green, glabrous; midrib and margins prominent; lateral nerves obscure; glands 2 or 3, lowermost one basal. Inflorescences 10–15-headed racemes; raceme axes 5–10 cm long; peduncles 10–20 mm long, 2 or 3 together along raceme axes except lowermost peduncles commonly single, glabrous; heads globular, 7–8 mm diam., densely 50–60-flowered, bright yellow; bracteole and sepal apices densely golden-hairy. Flowers 5-merous; sepals c. 4/5-united. Pods to 13 cm long, 10–18 mm wide, firmly chartaceous, pruinose, glabrous. Seeds transverse to oblique, circular to widely elliptic, 4.5–5 mm long, shiny, blackish; funicle flat, linear, exarillate.
Occurs from Adavale S to near Thargomindah but mainly confined to the Grey Ra., Qld. Grows in clay or loam, often with A. petraea , on low hills.
Closely allied to the more westerly distributed A. pruinocarpa which has subacute to obtuse phyllodes; also appears to have some affinity with A. beckleri .
Type of accepted name
‘Whynot’ between Quilpie and Thargomindah, Qld, Nov. 1957, S.L.Everist 5657 ; holo: BRI; iso: A, K.
Synonymy
Racosperma ensifolium (Pedley) Pedley, Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 92: 248 (1986). Type: as for accepted name.
Illustrations
M.Simmons, Acacias Australia 184 & pls 24 & 26 (1981).
Representative collections
Qld: between Nerrigundah and Boalli, S.L.Everist 7481 (PERTH); Adavale- Windorah road, 66 km W of Adavale, C.H.Gittins 1230 (BRI, NSW); 16 km S of Toompine, V.J.Neldner & M.B.Thomas 540A (BRI).
(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.
