Acacia covenyi Tindale, Telopea 1: 432; 433, pl. 19 & 436, pl. 20c- d (1980)
Blue Bush
Glabrous shrub or tree 1.5–7.5 m high. Branchlets acutely angled at extremities, pruinose. Phyllodes on raised stem-projections, crowded, slightly inequilateral, narrowly oblong-elliptic, 3.5–5.5 cm long, 5–11 mm wide, mucronate, thin, glaucous, 1-nerved per face, obscurely penninerved; gland not prominent, 6–23 mm above pulvinus, commonly connected to midrib or pulvinus by fine oblique nerve(s). Inflorescences racemose; raceme axes 3–5.5 cm long, slender, normally pruinose and flexuose; peduncles 2–5 mm long, slender; heads globular, normally 5–8-flowered, bright yellow; bracteoles sessile, widely ovate, pruinose. Flowers 5-merous; sepals 2/3–5/6-united. Pods narrowly oblong, to 8 cm long, 9–13 mm wide, firmly chartaceous to thinly coriaceous, pruinose. Seeds longitudinal, ovate, 4–4.5 mm long, somewhat shiny, black; funicle straight and appressed to inner surface of pod for 4 mm; aril clavate.
Restricted in N.S.W. to the eastern hills of the Great Divide from the Deva R. to near Kybean. Grows in thickets, mainly on limestone slopes and ridges but also sometimes on quartzite.
Gland morphology is important in distinguishing A. covenyi from related species such as A. prominens , A. barringtonensis , etc., fide M.D.Tindale, Telopea 1: 436, pl. 20 (1980). Acacia barringtonensis is further distinguished by its hairy branchlets, phyllodes, raceme axes, peduncles and ovary.
The distinctive bracteoles are similar to those found in A. dawsonii (sect. Plurinerves ).
Type of accepted name
Con Ck, Bendethera, c. 32 km W of Moruya, N.S.W., 10 May 1966, E.F.Constable 6877 ; holo: NSW; iso: CANB n.v ., K n.v ., MEL, US n.v.
Illustrations
M.D.Tindale, loc. cit .; T.Tame, Acacias SE Australia 163, fig. 182, pl. 182 (1992).
Representative collections
N.S.W.: Bendethera Caves, 32 km W of Moruya, E.F.Constable 6857 (NSW); E of Kybean near Cooma, early Aug. 1977, G.Neville s.n. (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.
