Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Occurs from Bunbury S to near Chapman Hill (20 km S of Busselton), and near Yarloop, c. 50 km NE of Bunbury, south-western W.A.

Description

Rush-like subshrub, erect or sometimes sprawling, often multistemmed, normally to c. 0.6 m high, glabrous. Stems slender, sparingly branched. Phyllodes resembling branchlets/stems, distant, ascending to erect, narrowly linear, dimorphic (on lower stems: flat, to 11 cm long, 2–5 mm wide; on upper stems: quadrangular to flat, 1.5–7 cm long, 0.5–1 mm wide, often subuncinate); midrib prominent; gland normally absent. Inflorescences 4–9-headed racemes, enclosed when young by conspicuous imbricate brown bracts; raceme axes mostly 4–20 mm long, slender; peduncles mostly 5–10 mm long, slender; heads globular, 6–9-flowered, light golden; bracteoles absent. Flowers 5-merous; sepals united into a ±cupular calyx, to 1/4 length of corolla; petals ±nerveless. Pods narrowly oblong, to 5 cm long, 5–6 mm wide, crustaceous; margins thick. Seeds ±longitudinal, c. 3.5 mm long, slightly shiny, brown; aril clavate.

Habitat

Grows in sand in swampy areas in closed scrub or closed heath, also along creeks in similar situations within Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata)–Marri (Corymbia calophylla) forest.

Specimens

W.A.: c. 3 km W of Yarloop, R.J.Cranfield 116 (CANB, PERTH); 1.6 km E of Nannup–Busselton road towards Tutunup, B.R.Maslin 2817 (AD, BH, BRI, CANB, E, K, L, NSW, PERTH, SYD); 11 km SE of Chapman Hill, G.S.McCutcheon 579 (PERTH).

Notes

Resembling A. restiacea in habit and by having the young racemes enclosed by conspicuous bracts, but differs with having more phyllodes, heads with less flowers and non-moniliform pods. Probably related to A. squamata which also has conspicuous inflorescence bracts. Sometimes confounded with A. adjutrices.

FOA Reference

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

Author

B.R.Maslin

Minor edits by J.Rogers