Acacia stricta (Andrews) Willd., Sp. Pl . 4th edn, 4: 1052 (1806)
Hop Wattle , Straight Wattle
Shrub or tree 1–5 m high, often suckering. Branchlets angled towards extremities, striate with yellowish resin ribs, glabrous. Phyllodes ascending to erect, normally linear to linear-oblanceolate or narrowly elliptic, straight to incurved or shallowly recurved, 3.5–14 cm long, 3–10 (- 15) mm wide, narrowed at base, obtuse, thin, glabrous, dull, green to grey-green or subglaucous, with prominent, resinous, often mealy midrib, occasionally 2-nerved per face, closely reticulately penninerved. Inflorescences normally simple and 2–4 per axil; peduncles 2–5 mm long, glabrous, slightly viscid; basal bract persistent; heads globular to obloid, 20–38-flowered, cream to lemon yellow, sometimes light golden; young buds mealy. Flowers 5-merous; sepals united to near their apices. Pods linear, to 7 cm long, 2–4 mm wide, firmly chartaceous to thinly coriaceous, light brown, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, oblong-elliptic, 3–4.5 mm long, shiny, dark brown; aril terminal.
Widespread in eastern Australia from south-eastern Qld to near Mount Gambier, S.A.; it occurs mainly on lower parts of the Great Divide and on coastal plains of Vic. and N.S.W., and coastal areas of Tas., including islands of Bass Strait. Grows in sand or sandy clay in Eucalyptus forest or woodland, or open scrub with heath understorey, often in moist sites.
This species appears to be most closely related to A. errabunda (W.A.). Also related to A. verniciflua and A. leprosa which are most readily distinguished by their resinous-punctate phyllodes with the lateral nerves not forming a close reticulum.
Putative hybrids between A. stricta and A. paradoxa (syn. A. armata ) are noted by A.B.Court, in J.H.Willis, Handb. Pl. Victoria 2: 216 (1973), from near Wantirna South and at Montrose, Vic.
Type of accepted name
The plate (taken from a plant raised from seed collected by W.Paterson at Port Jackson [Sydney, N.S.W.] and sent to England in 1793), fide L.Pedley, Austrobaileya 1: 262 (1980).
Synonymy
Mimosa stricta Andrews, Bot. Repos. 1: t. 53 (1799); Phyllodoce stricta (Andrews) Link, Handbuch 2: 133 (1831). Type: as for accepted name.
Acacia emarginata H.L.Wendl., Comm. Acac. Aphyll . 4, 27 (1820). Type: cultivated at Herrenhausen botanic garden [near Hanover]; holo: GOET.
Acacia stricta var. binervis F.Muell., J. Proc. Linn. Soc., Bot . 3: 131 (1859). Type: Tas., Stuart ; holo: MEL 674573.
Acacia stricta var. pleiocephala F.Muell., J. Proc. Linn. Soc., Bot . 3: 131 (1859). Type: South Port, Tas., Stuart ; n.v.
[ Acacia leprosa auct. non Sieber ex DC.: J.Lindley, Edwards’ Bot. Reg. 17: t. 1441 (1831)]
Illustrations
E.R.Rotherham et al ., Fl. Pl. New South Wales & S Queensland 54 (1975); L.F.Costermans, Native Trees & Shrubs SE Australia 311 (1981); T.Tame, Acacias SE Australia 106, fig. 104, pl. 104 (1992); D.J.E.Whibley & D.E.Symon, Acacias S. Australia 2nd edn, 85 (1992).
Representative collections
S.A.: near Devil’s Hole, Caroline Forest (Caroline, c. 15 km SE of Mt Gambier), D.N.Kraehenbuehl 963 (AD). Qld: 11 km SE of Ballandean, R.Coveny 1941 (BRI, NSW). N.S.W.: 4.8 km E of Bilpin on the Bells Line Rd, Blue Mtns, R.Coveny 2899 (NSW, PERTH); Vic.: Wattle Is., Wilson’s Promontory Natl Park, 11 Nov. 1979, P.Thomas (MEL). Tas.: Blackman Bay, 16 Aug. 1979, S.J.Jarman s.n. (PERTH).
(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.
