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Acacia
Also called Acacia, Wattle, Wattles
Acacia, or wattle, is a large genus of about 1,000 shrubs and trees, mostly native to Australia, with fluffy golden-yellow flower spikes and bipinnate or phyllode foliage. Most commonly grown members like to be planted in full sun with well-drained soil and little water once established.
Acacia, commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about 1,084 species of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Australasia, but is now reserved for species mainly from Australia, with others from New Guinea, Southeast Asia, and the Indian Ocean.
The genus name is Neo-Latin, borrowed from Koine Greek ἀκακία (akakia), a term used in antiquity to describe a preparation extracted from Vachellia nilotica, the original type species. Several species of Acacia have been introduced to various parts of the world, and two million hectares of commercial plantations have been established.
Some species of acacia contain psychoactive alkaloids, and some contain potassium fluoroacetate.
Species of Acacia occur in all Australian states and territories, and on its nearby islands. About 20 species occur naturally outside Australia and 7 of these also occur in Australia. Two species (Acacia koa and Acacia koaia) are native to Hawaii and one (Acacia heterophylla) is native to Mauritius and Réunion in the Indian Ocean.
The seed pods, flowers, and young leaves are generally edible either raw or cooked.
Jam wattle · Mulga · Acacia aneura var. major · Mulga · Earleaf acacia · Cootamundra wattle · Gidgee · Bower wattle · Cole's Wattle · Small Philippine acacia · Knife acacia · Silver Wattle
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Acacia by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
