ACACIA 



ACACIA 



183 



the supposed distinction of straight pods in A. acinacea 

 can be traced into the curled pods of A. obligua. 



14. dodonaeifdlia, Willd. A tall, glabrous, very resin- 

 ous shrub: phyll. lanceolate to linear-falcate, tapering to 

 base, having the appearance of being encrusted with a 

 brownish powder, lJ^-2, sometimes 4, in. long, about 

 Jin. wide, the lateral veins prominent and anastomos- 

 ing; 1 central nerve ending in an oblique point: fls. 

 solitary or in pairs, not exceeding the phyll. ; peduncles 

 }^>in. long; about 40 fls. in a head, 5-merpus; calyx more 

 than half as long as corolla: pod straight or falcate, 

 about J^in. wide; seeds longitudinal; funicle with last 

 2 or 3 folds dilated into an irregular cup-shaped aril. 

 March. Superficially this resembles the A. retinodes 

 group, but the fls. are solitary or in pairs instead of 

 in racemes, and it has an apparent incrustation on 

 foliage. 



15. podalyriaefdlia, Cunn. (.4. Fraseri, Hook. A. 

 Caleyi, Cunn.). Fig. 72. A tall, glabrous shrub with 

 conspicuous gray branchlets covered with a soft pubes- 

 cence: phyll. pinniveined, pubescent (rarely glabrous), 

 ovate or oblong, 1-1 1 A in. long, M-1J4 in. wide, nerve- 

 like margins and prominent excentric midrib ending in 

 oblique point, the margins and midrib ciliate; gland 

 at middle or just below: racemes simple, longer than 

 phyll., of numerous small heads; calyx turbinate, not 

 half so long as corolla; petals hirsute, with prominent 

 midrib: pod flat, either glabrous or pubescent, 1-3, or 

 more, in. long, %in. broad; seeds longitudinal; funicle not 

 encircling seed but in short folds at hilum end, the last 

 fold slightly thickened. R.B. 33:105. G.C. III. 43:11. 

 Gt. 54:1541. G.W. 9, p. 158. Its neat gray ovate 

 Ivs. and abundant long yellow racemes at the end of 

 the branches make it a very decorative and popular 

 species. 



16. cultriffirmis, Cunn. (A. cultr&ta, Ait.). A tall 

 shrub with gray foliage thickly clothing the branches: 

 phyll. with nerve-like margins, obliquely ovate to 

 almost triangular, J/2-1 in. long, M-J^in. wide, with 

 gland on upper edge one-third distance from base, the 

 intervening edge straight and closely hugging the 

 branchlets; vein excentric, much curved, ending in 

 mucronate point: racemes axillary, much exceeding 

 the phyll.; fls. 30-40 in a head; sepals half as long as 

 petals; peduncles J^in. long: pod a rich brown, with 

 nerve-like margins, 1 J^-3 in. long, J/iin. wide, occasion- 

 ally constricted between the seed; seed oblong, longi- 

 tudinal; funicle half as long as seed, silvery and enlarged 

 into a cup-shaped aril almost from the beginning; ripe 

 Sept., Oct. Fls. March, Apr. R.H. 1896, p. 503. J.H. 

 111.34:131. If kept well pruned it makes a good 

 hedge. Has been cult, in Calif, for many years in the 

 open, and is considered a desirable plant. 



17. pravissima, F. v. M. Fig. 72. A small tree, 15-20 

 ft. high with decurrent, pendulous, finger-like branchlets 

 thickly clothed with short foliage: phyll. J^-l in- long, 

 ^-J^in. broad, cuneiform to trapezoid, one angle 

 rounded, the other acute, indistinctly 2-nerved, the 

 prominent nerve excentric and ending in a mucronate 

 point; gland large, near middle of upper edge: racemes 

 much longer than phyll., 10 to more fls. in a head; pedun- 

 cles Ain. long: pods, when ripe, once or twice twisted, 

 with nerve-like margins and mucronate tip, \%-2% 

 in. long, J^m- wide; seed small, longitudinal, with 

 prominent central marking; funicle as long as seed, 

 enlarged into club-shaped aril; ripe July, Aug. Fls. 

 Feb., March. A very graceful showy species that is 

 becoming popular. 



18. lunata, Sieb. (A. olesefolia, Cunn.). A glabrous 

 shrub with angular branches: phyll. oblong-falcate, 

 obtuse, with sharp point, %-\ in. long, M~Min. wide; 

 vein excentric; gland one-third distance from base: 

 racemes simple, longer than phyll.; fls. 4-15 in a head; 

 calyx united, about one-third length of corolla: pod 

 straight or curved, J^in. wide, seeds longitudinal, near 



upper suture, the last fold of the funicle thickened into 

 a lateral club-shaped aril, the lower folds very small. 

 Apr. B.R. 1352. This resembles A. linifolia var. 

 prominens in fls. and foliage; the fr. is necessary to dis- 

 tinguish them. 



19. brachybdtrya, Benth. Tall shrub: phyll. YT-\% 

 in., rarely, in luxuriant specimens, 2 in. long, obliquely 

 obovate or oblong, firm, rather broad, obtuse or 

 mucronulate: fl. -heads few, short, axillary racemes, 

 about equaling the phyll., or rarely reduced to 1 head; 

 fls. 20-50 in a head: pod flat, linear to narrow-elliptical. 



Var. argyrophylla, Benth. (A. argyrophylla, Hook.). 

 Silvery-silky, turning sometimes golden yellow: phyll. 

 mostly %-lH m - long: fl.-heads often solitary. B.M. 

 4384. 



Var. glaucophylla, Benth. Glaucous and more or 

 less pubescent: phyll. mostly J^-%in. long: fl.-heads 

 mostly 2-5, shortly racemose. 



Var. glabra, Benth. Quite glabrous: phyll. small and 

 narrow: fl.-heads small. 



20. myrtifdlia, Willd. A tall shrub with angular 

 branchlets, the angles, glands and margins of phyll. 

 edged with light red or pink: phyll. oval to ovate- 

 lanceolate, the apex either acute with oblique point or 

 obtuse and rounded, 1^~2 in. long, J^-V6in. wide; 

 gland M" 1 - from base; nerve excentric: fls. in racemes 

 nearly as long as phyll.; peduncles Jiin. long; fl.-heads 

 few (3-5), though large, 4-merous; petals with promi- 

 nent midrib; sepals short, united: pod with nerve-like 

 margins, curved and contracted between the seeds and 

 tough, 3 in. long, %m. broad; funicle short, thickened 

 into cup-shaped aril. B.M. 302. Fls. Feb-Mar. 



Var. celastrifolia, Benth. (A. celastrifdlia, Benth.). 

 Phyll. mostly 1% in- long and often 1 in. broad. B.M. 

 4306. 



Var. normalis, Benth. Phyll. mostly 1-2 in. long and 

 about y-i\n. broad. 



Var. angustif&lia, Benth. Phyll. mostly 2-4 in. long, 

 J-6-J^jin. broad. 



21. sentis, F. y. M. A rigid shrub or small tree 30 

 or 40 ft. high, with terete branchlets and when young 

 either glabrous or pubescent: phyll. various, either 

 lanceolate-oblong with a short point or linear with a 

 hooked point, in some specimens Min. long by J^ or 

 }in. broad and in others again they muy be 2 in. long 

 and Am. broad; marginal gland near base or wanting; 

 stipules reduced to spines, occasionally none: fls. soli- 

 tary or in pairs or racemes, 20-30 fls. in a head; sepals 

 linear, spatulate, ciliate: pod flat, 2-3 in. long, ^-%in. 

 broad; seeds nearly oblique, the funicle gradually 

 thickened and folded several times, fitting against seed 

 like a cap. May. F. v. M. Icon. 4:9. A desert species 

 commonly growing in sandy soil. It thrives with scant 

 rainfall but requires much light, although in its native 

 country it is now and then found among large trees. It 

 is a valuable fodder plant, cattle eating it greedily. A 

 specimen in Calif, was growing on soil that was almost 

 rock and consequently became shallow-rooted. The 

 wind threw it down repeatedly but each time when set 

 in place it continued its growth, apparently unharmed. 

 In New S. Wales it is said that the presence of this tree 

 is a sure indication of underground water. Its roots 

 have been found 80 ft. from the surface. 



22. linifolia, Willd. A tall shrub with a minute 

 pubescence on the branchlets and at the base of the 

 young phyll.: phyll. linear on young shoots to linear- 

 lanceolate on more mature ones, Ji-lJ^ in. long, 

 fa-%m. wide, 1-nerved, ending in mucronate point; 

 gland below the middle small: racemes shorter than 

 phyll., with 8-12 fls. in a had: pod flat, with nerve-like 

 margins, 2>-4 in. long, %in. wide; funicle half as long 

 as seed, with club-shaped aril. B.M. 2168. 



Var. pr6minens, Moore (A. prominens, Cunn.). 

 Phyll. wider, oblong-lanceolate, 1-1 K in. long, 



