Plants of
South Australia
Acacia barattensis
Fabaceae
Baratta Wattle
Display all 11 images
Regional Species Conservation Assessments per IBRA subregion.
Least concern
Near threatened
Rare
Vulnerable
Endangered
Critically endangered
Extinct
Data deficient
Adelaide
Arkaroola
Ceduna
Coober Pedy
Hawker
Innamincka
Marla
Marree
Mount Gambier
Oodnadatta
Renmark
Wudinna
Keith
Yunta
Enlarge Map
Copy Map
Copy Map
Display IBRA region text

Botanical art

Kath Alcock painting: 1

Etymology

Acacia from the Greek 'akakia' and derived from 'ake' or 'akis' meaning a sharp point or thorn and 'akazo' meaning to sharpen. Dioscorides, the Greek physician and botanist used the word in the 1st century AD for the Egyptian thorn tree, Acacia arabica. Barattensis refers to the Baratta Head Station, where this species was first discovered.

Distribution and status

Endemic to South Australia and restricted to the eastern Flinders Ranges and just into the Eastern region around the 'Baratta' Homestead area. Native. Very rare in South Australia.
Herbarium regions: Flinders Ranges, Eastern
NRM region: South Australian Arid Lands
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Erect, somewhat diffuse, spreading, viscid, aromatic shrubs to 3 m high, with a number of slender branches arising from near ground level. Branches slender, erect angular and very viscid towards their apices, less viscid on older stems and often covered with a blackish sooty substance. Leaves narrow-linear, compressed to 10 cm long and 1.5 mm broad; erect, mostly slightly curved with 3-veined on each face, viscid, sticky and shiny, with a resinous odour . Small gland on upper margin approximately 2-3mm above the base. Inflorescences simple and axillary, solitary or twin with globular, pale yellow flower-heads. Flowering between April and December. Fruits are dark brown, flat, straight or slightly curved pods to 15 cm long and 3.5 mm wide, viscid when young. Margins thickened and straw coloured, constricted between the seeds. Seeds are hard dark brown to black, ovoid to oblong seeds to 6 mm long and 2 mm wide. Seed embryo type is investing.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between November and January. Collect mature pods that are turning brown with hard, dark seeds inside. Place the pods in a tray and leave to dry for 1-2 weeks or until the pods begin to split. Then rub the dried pods to dislodge the seeds. Use a sieve to separate any unwanted material. Store the seeds with a desiccant such as dried silica beads or dry rice, in an air tight container in a cool and dry place. From two collections, the seed viability was high, at 85% and 100%. This species has physical dormancy that needs to be overcome for the seed to germinate (e.g. nicking or softening the seed coat).

Seeds stored:
  Hide
LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)
Number
of plants
Date
collected
Collection number
Collection location
Date
stored
% ViabilityStorage
temperature
BGA 
MSB
1,040 (8.56 g)
1,040 (8.56 g)
80+22-Nov-2009KHB317
Flinders Ranges
1-Jun-2010100%-18°C
BGA700 (5.15 g)20+10-Dec-2009KHB340
Eastern
1-Jun-201085%-18°C
Location: BGA — the seeds are stored at the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, MSB — the seeds are stored at the Millennium Seed Bank, Kew, England.
Number of plants: This is the number of plants from which the seeds were collected.
Collection location: The Herbarium of South Australia's region name.
% Viability: Percentage of filled healthy seeds determined by a cut test or x-ray.