Kingdom Plantae Family Fabaceae Scientific name Acacia leprosa | Order Fabales Genus Acacia Rank Species | |
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Similar Acacia leprosa 'Scarlet Bl, Acacia verniciflua, Acacia stricta, Acacia genistifolia, Thorntree | ||
Acacia leprosa top 7 facts
Acacia leprosa, also known as cinnamon wattle, is an acacia native to Australia. It occurs in woodland in New South Wales and Victoria. It occurs as a hardy shrub or small tree. The phyllodes (a modified flat leaf-like structure arising through an expanded petiole replacing the leaf blade) are 3-14 cm long and contain oil glands. The lemon-yellow flowers occur as globular heads in clusters in the leaf axils. The fruit is flat seed pod.
Contents
A number of varieties are currently recognised within the species including:
Former varieties include:
The cultivar Acacia leprosa 'Scarlet Blaze' is the only Australian wattle to have red inflorescences (all the rest are yellow or cream-colored, except for Acacia purpureapetala, which has purple flowers). It was discovered northeast of Melbourne, Australia, in 1995, and released commercially in 2001. Acacia leprosa is mentioned in The Australasian Sketcher of Saturday 19 June 1880 in part two of an article on the Mallee Country, as one of the 'beautiful shrubs' found in the region and identified by Mr Guilfoyle, director of the botanic gardens.
Cultivation
The species prefers a well drained sunny or lightly shaded situation. Propagation is by pretreated seeds or cuttings.
