Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Known only from Mt Maroon, Maroon Natl Park, S of Boonah in south-eastern Qld.

Description

Diffuse much-branched shrub to 1.5 m high. Branchlets sparsely hirsutellous or glabrous. Stipules 1.5–3 mm long. Phyllodes crowded, scattered, some subverticillate, subsessile, patent to inclined, lanceolate to ±narrowly triangular, straight to shallowly recurved, 7.5–14 mm long, 1.7–3 mm wide, acuminate, pungent, rigid, dark glossy green, glabrous; midrib prominent; gland obscure, 2–3 mm above base. Inflorescences 1-headed rudimentary racemes with axes c. 0.5 mm long; peduncles 6–15 mm long, stout, 0.5–1 mm diam., glabrous; basal bract often trifid; heads globular, 13 mm diam., 40–50-flowered, pale golden yellow; bracteoles acuminate, exserted beyond flowers in buds. Flowers 5-merous; sepals free, oblanceolate; petals 1-nerved. Pods to 3 cm long, 5–6 mm wide, firmly chartaceous to ±crustaceous, irregularly undulate, dark brown, glabrous. Seeds longitudinal, depressed-globular, 4 mm long, exarillate.

Habitat

It is a major constituent of heath on the summit of the mountain (alt. c. 900 m) and grows on rocky slopes in soil pockets within rock crevices.

Specimens

Qld: Mt Maroon, S.L.Everist 7050 (BRI).

Notes

A member of the ‘A. ulicifolia group’ and distinguished from A. ulicifolia itself by broader phyllodes, stouter peduncles, pale golden heads and exserted bracteoles. Its phyllodes resemble those of A. siculiformis.

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