Acacia difformis R.T.Baker, Proc. Linn. Soc. New South Wales 22: 154; pl. 9 (1897)
Drooping Wattle , Wyalong Wattle , Mystery Wattle (Vic.)
Irregularly formed shrub or rounded tree normally 2–7 m high, sometimes forming thickets. Branchlets acutely triquetrous or flat at extremities, red-brown, glabrous. Phyllodes often pendulous, narrowly oblanceolate, sometimes narrowly elliptic or linear, straight to shallowly recurved, normally 6–16 cm long and 5–15 mm wide, obtuse, green to ash-coloured, glabrous, with prominent midrib, a weaker nerve parallel to midrib near adaxial margin, finely penninerved; glands 1 or 2, the lowermost normally 1–3 cm above pulvinus and sometimes touching the adaxial longitudinal nerve or connected to it by a fine oblique nerve. Inflorescences 8–25-headed racemes; raceme axes 1–6 cm long, glabrous; peduncles normally 3–6 mm long, glabrous; heads globular, 20–35-flowered, light golden. Flowers 5-merous; sepals united. Pods moniliform, to 20 cm long, 4–6 mm wide, thinly coriaceous to crustaceous, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, oblong to elliptic, 6.5–8 mm long, slightly shiny, dark brown; funicle encircling seed in a single fold, reddish black; aril clavate.
Scattered on the inland slopes of the Great Divide and adjacent plains from Cobar and Merrygoen, N.S.W., to Dimboola, Vic. Grows in sand or sandy loam, usually in Mallee communities or open forest. Often flowers in summer.
A distinctive member of the ‘ Acacia microbotrya group’ on account of its phyllodes with a strong midrib and a weaker secondary nerve parallel to it which runs the full length of the phyllode near the adaxial margin. Acacia hakeoides is similar in phyllode and pod shape and size but differs especially by having phyllodes with 1 nerve per face, white-fimbriolate bracteoles and funicles that do not encircle the seeds.
Type of accepted name
Rylestone (Bylong), N.S.W., Sept. 1895, R.T.Baker ; syn: NSW; Diligah via Merrygoen, N.S.W., 9 Feb. 1897, H.A.Patrick ; syn: NSW; Cobar, N.S.W., J.M.Curran ; syn: n.v .; Tocumwal (without other details); n.v .
Illustrations
R.T.Baker, loc. cit. ; L.F.Costermans, Native Trees & Shrubs SE Australia 319 (1981); G.M.Cunningham et al. , Pl. W New South Wales 360 (1981); M.Simmons, Acacias Australia 2: 191 (1988); T.Tame, Acacias SE Australia 142, fig. 152, pl. 152 (1992).
Representative collections
N.S.W.: Goonoo State Forest, 8 km E of Mogriguy, 9 Dec. 1961, E.F.Constable 15 (MEL, MO, NSW, PERTH); 41.5 km WNW of West Wyalong towards Rankins Springs, R.Coveny 2551 (MEL, PERTH). Vic.: Bendigo Whipstick, c. 14 km due N of Bendigo township, B.R.Maslin 5855 (CANB, MEL, PERTH); Wright paddock adjoining Nhill Rd near Dimboola, 23 Nov. 1899, F.M.Reader s.n . (MEL).
(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.
