Common name: Mudgee wattle
Acacia spectabilis A.Cunn. ex Benth. APNI* Synonyms: Racosperma spectabile (A.Cunn. ex Benth.) Pedley APNI*
Description: Erect or spreading shrub 1.5–4 m high or rarely a tree to 6 m high, single-stemmed; bark smooth, grey or whitish; branchlets ± terete, glabrous or hairy, usually pruinose.
Leaves usually grey-green to glaucous, with petiole 0.1–1.2 cm long, glabrous or hairy, usually 1 inconspicuous gland at or near base of lowest pair of pinnae; rachis 1–8.5 cm long, glabrous or hairy, jugary and interjugary glands absent or rarely 1 gland at apex; pinnae usually 2–6 pairs, 0.5–3.5 cm long; pinnules 2–8 pairs, oblong to ± oblanceolate, usually 7–16 mm long, 2.5–7 mm wide, glabrous.
Inflorescences 7–45 in an axillary raceme with axis to 21 cm long or in a panicle; peduncles 3–10 mm long, glabrous or sparsely hairy; heads globose, 12–20-flowered, 6–10 mm diam., bright yellow.
Pods straight or ± curved, ± flat, ± straight-sided to barely or irregularly more deeply constricted between seeds, 4–17 cm long, 10–19 mm wide, thinly leathery, glabrous, ± pruinose; seeds longitudinal; funicle filiform.
Flowering: chiefly July–November.
Distribution and occurrence: chiefly on the Slopes north from Cowra and west from Capertee Valley; often cultivated, sometimes naturalised. Grows in dry sclerophyll forest (often eucalypt and Callitris woodlands) and heath, in sandy or gravelly soils.
NSW subdivisions: *NC, *CC, ?CT, NWS, CWS, NWP
Other Australian states: Qld
Similar to Acacia polybotrya which has jugate glands, narrower pods and shorter inflorescences with smaller heads. The name refers to the showy display of the species when in flower.
Text by P.G. Kodela
Taxon concept: P.G. Kodela & G.J. Harden, Flora of NSW Vol. 2 (2002)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data
***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
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