WATTLE

Acacias of Australia

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Acacia flexifolia A.Cunn. ex Benth.

Common Name

Bent-leaf Wattle, Small Winter Wattle

Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Scattered on the inland slopes of the Great Divide and adjacent plains from near Miles, Qld, S through N.S.W. to Wedderburn, Vic.

Description

Rather bushy spreading shrub normally to 1.5 m high. Branchlets appressed-puberulous and scurfy between the prominently raised resin-ribs. Phyllodes ascending to erect, linear to narrowly linear, normally kinked or bent upwards at a few mm above the base, 1–2.5 cm long, 0.7–2.5 mm wide, often slightly dilated at apex, obtuse, dull green to grey-green, glabrous, sometimes glutinous; midrib markedly raised, very close to adaxial margin and often contiguous with it towards apex. Inflorescences simple, mostly 2 per axil; peduncles (1–) 2–4 mm long, hoary, resinous; basal bract persistent; heads globular, 3–10-flowered, pale yellow or lemon yellow, resinous. Flowers 5-merous; sepals united. Pods narrowly linear, straight to curved, to 10 cm long, 2–3 mm wide, thinly coriaceous, brown, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, oblong-elliptic, 4–5 mm long, shiny, brown; aril terminal.

Habitat

Grows in shallow soil in open forest or mallee scrub.

Specimens

Qld: 16–24 km N of Miles, V.Hando 141 (BRI). N.S.W.: 4.8 km W of West Wyalong on Midwestern Hwy, 14 June 1967, M.Tindale & J.Lanyon s.n. (NSW, PERTH). Vic.: Central Whipstick scrub near Bendigo, 27 Dec. 1953, W.Perry s.n. (MEL).

Notes

Related to A. lineata which differs especially in its obscure branchlet ribs which are not coated with a thick layer of resin, 10–16-flowered heads on peduncles 5–10 mm long, and phyllodes which are never ±kinked near their base and which possess scarcely raised (yet clearly excentric) midribs.

FOA Reference

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

Author

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

B.R.Maslin