Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
Acacia oxycedrus
Common name
Spike wattle
Family
Fabaceae
Where found
Forest, woodland, and heath. Coast and ranges mainly north of the Illawarra Highway. Coastal south of Pambula Lake.
Notes
Shrub or tree to 10 m tall. Fleshy seed stalks/arils. Sharp-pointed 'leaves'. Persistent sharp pointed or bristly stipules (usually rigid) 1-4 mm long at the bases of the 'leaves'. Bark smooth or finely fissured. Branchlets more or less cylindrical, bristly, becoming hairless with age. 'Leaves' scattered, sometimes whorled or clustered, 1-4 cm long, 1.5-6 mm wide, usually 3 or 4 longitudinal veins prominent, the upper vein becoming marginal towards the 'leaf' tip. Flower heads yellow, cylindrical, 15-50 mm long, in clusters of 1-3. Flowers Winter to Spring.
Family was Mimosaceae.
Hybridises with Acacia floribunda and with both subspecies of Acacia longifolia.. Possible hybrids between Acacia mucronata subsp. longifolia and Acacia oxycedrus have been reported.
PlantNET description: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Acacia~oxycedrus (accessed 28 April 2021)
World Wide Wattle photos, line drawings and description: http://www.worldwidewattle.com/imagegallery/image.php?p=0&l=o&id=20584&o=1
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