Acacia conferta A.Cunn. ex Benth., London J. Bot. 1: 345 (1842)
Crowded-leaf Wattle
Shrub or tree to 4 m high. Branchlets slender, with indumentum of sparse to dense, spreading, normally crisped or shallowly curved hairs. Phyllodes crowded, sometimes subverticillate, on short stem-projections, ascending to erect, linear-oblanceolate to narrowly oblong-elliptic, flat, 5–12 mm long, 1–1.6 mm wide, l:w = 4–10, obliquely and excentrically mucronulate with the mucro often incurved, often acute, green, glabrous or with scattered, spreading, short hairs, often finely longitudinally wrinkled when dry; midrib absent or obscure; gland small, 0.5–2 mm above pulvinus. Inflorescences simple, 1 per axil; peduncles 8–20 mm long, glabrous or indumentum similar to branchlets, the base ebracteate; heads globular, normally 20–25-flowered, bright yellow. Flowers 5-merous; sepals 1/4–1/2-united, sometimes free; petals normally 1.3–1.5 mm long. Pods normally to 6 cm long, 10–15 mm wide, firmly chartaceous, pruinose, glabrous. Seeds transverse, oblong-elliptic, 5–6 mm long, arillate.
Occurs on the western slopes and plains of N.S.W. N from Warialda and Moree, then extends from south-eastern Qld N to the coastal districts near Proserpine and inland as far as the W of Blackall, one collection from near Cairns. The type locality, if correct, is further S than other collections of this species in N.S.W. Grows in sand or loam, in dry sclerophyll Eucalyptus forest or woodland. Flowers mainly Apr.- Aug.
Closely related to A. tindaleae . Also close to A. arbiana and A. beadleana . Vegetatively similar to A. ruppii . Sometimes confused with A. brunioides which is distinguished by its terete to subterete phyllodes. Phyllodes may superficially resemble some forms of A. lineata .
Type of accepted name
Cugeegong R. and other tributaries of the Macquarie R., N.S.W., July 1827, A.Cunningham 9 ; lecto: K, fide L.Pedley, Austrobaileya 1: 247 (1980); iso: BM n.v. , K.
Synonymy
Racosperma confertum (A.Cunn. ex Benth.) Pedley, Austrobaileya 2: 347 (1987). Type: as for accepted name.
Illustrations
F. von Mueller, Iconogr. Austral. Acacia dec. 3 (1887); M.Simmons, Acacias Australia 2: 81 (1988); T.Tame, Acacias SE Australia 126, fig. 132, pl. 132 (1992).
Representative collections
Qld: Davies Ck, E of Mareeba, June 1960, W.T.Jones (BRI); subtropical New Holland [Maranoa R., Qld, fide L.Pedley, Austrobaileya 1: 248 (1979)], T.L.Mitchell ‘138’ (K); c. 120 km NW of Injune, I.R.Telford 5836 (BRI, NSW, BISH, PERTH). N.S.W.: 9.5 km by road E of Yetman, E.F.Constable 7132 (NSW).
(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.
