Plants of
South Australia
Acacia jennerae
Fabaceae
Coonavittra Wattle
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Adelaide
Arkaroola
Ceduna
Coober Pedy
Hawker
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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. Jennerae named after Miss A.M. Jenner, one time librarian at the Botanic Gardens, Sydney.

Distribution and status

Found scattered in the northern part of South Australia growing on red sandy flats. Also found in Western Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales. Native. Rare in South Australia. Rare in Queensland. Uncommon in New South Wales. Common in the other States.
Herbarium regions: North Western, Lake Eyre, Nullarbor, Gairdner-Torrens
NRM regions: Alinytjara Wilurara, South Australian Arid Lands
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Erect branching shrub to 3 m high, branchlets slightly angular, reddish-brown. Leaves elliptic, straight or slightly curved, glabrous, to 15 cm long and 1.6 cm wide. Inflorescences of axillary spike with globular golden yellow flower-heads. Flowering between March and August. Fruits are long narrow reddish-brown pod to 150 mm long and 8 mm wide with margin constricted around seeds. Seeds are seeds have not been collected in South Australia. Seed embryo type is investing.

Seed collection and propagation

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. This species has physical dormancy that needs to be overcome for the seed to germinate (e.g. nicking or softening the seed coat).