Acacia dempsteri F.Muell.
WATTLE
Acacias of Australia
Family
Fabaceae
Distribution
Scattered from near Kambalda S to Gilmore Rocks and E to Breeborinia Rock, c. 100 km S of Balladonia, W.A.
Description
Straggly shrub or tree to c. 3 m high. Branchlets pruinose, glabrous. Stipules spinose, 5–12 mm long. Phyllodes lanceolate to narrowly lanceolate, often slightly asymmetric, straight to shallowly curved or shallowly sigmoid, 3–6 cm long, 4–10 mm wide, excentrically mucronulate (mucro less than 1 mm long and sometimes pungent), thinly coriaceous, green to grey-green, glabrous; midrib rather prominent; lateral nerves obscure. Inflorescences initiated synchronously with phyllodes on new shoots; racemes few and less than 1 cm long; peduncles 1 or 2 per axil, (10–) 15–25 mm long, glabrous, with a small caducous bract near or above the middle; heads globular, large, c. 1 cm diam. when dry, densely 40–50-flowered, golden. Flowers 5-merous; sepals free, narrowly spathulate. Pods narrowly oblong, raised over seeds, to 5 cm long, 8–11mm wide, firmly chartaceous, dark brown, glabrous. Seeds transverse, oblong-elliptic, 3–4 mm long, shiny, dark brown except yellow at centre; aril once or twice folded.
Habitat
Confined to granite outcrops and grows in sand or sandy loam.
Specimens
W.A.: 68 km NW of Mt Ragged, W. Archer 22099022 (PERTH); Breeborinia Rock, K.Bradby KLB60 (PERTH); Gilmores, C.A.Gardner 2849 (K, PERTH); near Dundas Rock, S of Norseman, B.R.Maslin 2473 (CANB, K, PERTH).
Notes
Distinguished from other members of the ‘A. victoriae group’ by its large, golden flower-heads, lanceolate phyllodes and prominent, persistent stipules.
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 B.R.Maslin & J.Rogers
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