Common Name

Bynoe’s Wattle, Tiny Wattle

Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Restricted to the central coast and tablelands of N.S.W., from Morisset S to Mittagong and near Wollongong.

Description

Decumbent shrub to 0.3 m high. Branchlets ribbed, puberulous or minutely scabridulous. Phyllodes ascending, narrowly elliptic to linear, normally straight to shallowly curved, (0.5–) 1–5 (–8) cm long, 1–3 mm wide, acute, ±pungent and often curved to uncinate, coriaceous, minutely scabridulous on nerves, with 3 distant raised nerves. Inflorescences simple, 1 per axil; peduncles 2–6 mm long, ±puberulous; heads globular, 3.5–4 mm diam., 10–25-flowered, light golden; bracteoles linear-fusiform, puberulous, often one below head on peduncle. Flowers 5-merous; sepals 1/2‑united. Pods tapered to both ends, subterete, raised over and ±constricted between seeds, straight, to 3 cm long, 3–4 mm wide, firmly chartaceous to crustaceous, longitudinally raised-reticulate, puberulous. Seeds longitudinal, oblong, 4–4.5 mm long, dull, mottled-brown; funicle/aril terminal, thick.

Habitat

Uncommon in sandy soil in heath and dry sclerophyll forest.

Specimens

N.S.W.: Wentworth Falls, R.Bisby & R.Coveny 4089 (K n.v., NSW, PERTH); Berkshire Park, P.Hind 5467 (MEL n.v., NSW).

Notes

The phyllodes of the type collection are the narrowest seen for the species.

The Murray scrub specimens referred to under A. bynoeana by G.Bentham, Fl. Austral. 2: 337 (1864), are A. wilhelmiana, fide A.B.Court, Muelleria 2: 160 (1972).

Relationships uncertain; possibly related to A. trinervata which has angular, glabrous branchlets, sessile phyllodes, heads with more flowers, longer peduncles, longer pods and arillate seeds.

FOA Reference

Data derived from Flora of Australia Volumes 11A (2001), 11B (2001) and 12 (1998), products of ABRS, ©Commonwealth of Australia

Author

R.S.Cowan

Minor edits by B.R.Maslin & J.Reid