Family

Fabaceae

Distribution

Occurs at Mt Lesueur (c. 105 km due SSE of Dongara) with scattered populations occurring further SE from near Cataby (c. 45 km due W of Moora) to the vicinity of Gingin, with a single collection at Jurien Bay, south-western W.A.

Description

Glabrous open shrub to c. 1 m high. Branchlets prominently striate-ribbed. Phyllodes ±oblique, elliptic to narrowly elliptic with some tending obovate to oblanceolate, sometimes lanceolate, straight or falcately recurved, 4–12 cm long, 1.5–4 cm wide, l:w = 2–4, unequal at base, slightly undulate, obtuse-mucronate to acute with indurate mucro, glaucous to subglaucous; midrib prominent, normally shortly concurrent with abaxial margin at base; marginal nerves prominent; lateral nerves obscure; gland prominent, 0–4 (–8) mm above pulvinus. Inflorescences 3–14-headed racemes; raceme axes (0.2–) 0.5–3 (–3.3) cm long; peduncles 5–7 mm long; heads globular, rather loosely 5–7-flowered, cream to creamy yellow. Flowers 4‑merous; sepals 1/5–1/3 length of corolla, united into a ±truncate to sinuously lobed calyx. Pods erect, linear, curved, to 7 cm long, 4–5 mm wide, crustaceous to subwoody; marginal nerve thick, undulate. Seeds longitudinal, narrowly oblong, 5–6 mm long, shiny, dark brown; aril terminal.

Habitat

Grows in laterite or sand over laterite, on ridges or in gullies, in low Eucalyptus woodland or tall open shrubland with an understorey of low open heath.

Specimens

W.A.: TiTree Rd N, c. 9 km due SE of Gingin, L.Anderson s.n. (PERTH00160806); 14 km W of Brand Hwy in Gairdner Ra. near Mt Lesueur, E.A.Griffin 1026 (PERTH); 4 km E of Brand Hwy on Yandan Rd., c. 2.7 km S of Cataby, B.R.Maslin 5358 (PERTH).

Notes

A member of the ‘A. myrtifolia group’, distinguished from A. myrtifolia and A. celastrifolia by a combination of the following characters: branchlets rarely pruinose, gland less than 5 mm above pulvinus, racemes 0.5–3 cm long, heads cream to creamy yellow and 5–7-flowered, and flowers with a single, glabrous ovary.

Phyllodes are variable in shape and size. On plants from around Mt Lesueur they are 4–7 cm long and ±straight whereas in the southern populations they are commonly longer (to 12 cm) and falcately recurved.

FOA Reference

Data derived from Flora of Australia Volumes 11A (2001), 11B (2001) and 12 (1998), products of ABRS, ©Commonwealth of Australia

Author

B.R.Maslin

Minor edits by J.Rogers