Acacia filicifolia

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Rosids
Cladus: Eurosids I
Ordo: Fabales

Familia: Fabaceae
Subfamilia: Caesalpinioideae
Tribus: Acacieae
Genus: Acacia
Species: Acacia filicifolia
Name

Acacia filicifolia Cheel & M.B.Welch, 1932

Synonyms

Racosperma filicifolium (Cheel & M.B.Welch) Pedley

Distribution
Native distribution areas:
Acacia filicifolia

Continental: Australasia
Regional: Australia
New South Wales, Queensland

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References
Primary references

Cheel, E. & Welch, M.B., 1932. J. Proc. Roy. Soc. New South Wales 65:225, t. 7, 8.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2020. Acacia filicifolia in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2020 Aug 03. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2019. Acacia filicifolia. Published online. Accessed: Aug 03 2019.
Tropicos.org 2019. Acacia filicifolia. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 03 Aug 2019.
Hassler, M. Aug. Acacia filicifolia. World Plants: Synonymic Checklists of the Vascular Plants of the World In: Roskovh, Y., Abucay, L., Orrell, T., Nicolson, D., Bailly, N., Kirk, P., Bourgoin, T., DeWalt, R.E., Decock, W., De Wever, A., Nieukerken, E. van, Zarucchi, J. & Penev, L., eds. Aug. Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life. Published online. Accessed: Aug 03 {{{3}}}. Reference page.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Acacia filicifolia in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 09-Oct-10.

Vernacular names
English: Fern-leaved Wattle

Acacia filicifolia, commonly known as fern-leaved wattle, is a plant in the legume family, Fabaceae and is native to eastern Australia. It is a shrub or tree with compound leaves resembling fern fronds, and spherical heads of yellow or bright yellow flowers from autumn to late spring. It is a common and widespread species, especially on the coast and tablelands of New South Wales.

Description

Acacia filicifolia is an erect shrub or tree which grows to a height of 3–14 m (10–50 ft) and has smooth grey or dark brown bark which develops fissures as it ages. The smaller branches are more or less cylindrical with fine, longitudinal ridges. The leaves are compound with a petiole 7–23 mm (0.3–0.9 in) long with between one and five prominent glands. The rachis of the leaf is usually 40–120 mm (2–5 in) long with irregularly scattered glands and usually five to fourteen pairs of pinnae which are 30–80 mm (1–3 in) long. Each pinna has 25 to 100 pairs of pinnules, the smallest division of the leaf blade, each of which is narrow oblong to linear in shape, 4–10 mm (0.2–0.4 in) long and about 0.5 mm (0.02 in) wide.[2]

The inflorescence is a branching panicle with the flowers in spherical heads on peduncles 2–4 mm (0.08–0.2 in) long. Each head of flowers is 3–6 mm (0.1–0.2 in) in diameter and consists of fifteen to thirty individual yellow to bright yellow flowers. Flowering occurs from July to October and the fruit which develop are legumes or "pods" 35–130 mm (1–5 in) long and 6–17 mm (0.2–0.7 in) wide. The pods are more or less flat and straight-sided.[2]
Acacia filicifolia habit
Taxonomy and naming

Acacia filicifolia was first formally described in 1932 by Edwin Cheel and Marcus Baldwin Welch but they did not nominate a type specimen. The description was published in the Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales.[3][4] The specific epithet (filicifolia) is derived from the Latin words filix meaning "fern"[5]: 323  and folium meaning "a leaf"[5]: 466  referring to the similarity of the leaves of this wattle to the fronds of some species of fern.[2]
Distribution and habitat

Fern-leaved wattle grows in forest in sandy soil, often in gullies and creeks from south-eastern Queensland to Batemans Bay in southern New South Wales. It is mostly found on the coast and nearby tablelands.[2]
References

"Acacia filicifolia". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
Kodela, Philip G. "Acacia filicifolia". Royal Botanic Garden Sydney; plantnet. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
"Acacia filicifolia". APNI. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
Cheel, Edwin; Welch, Marcus (1932). "An undescribed species of wattle Acacia filicifolia". Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales. 65: 232–234. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.