Queensland Silver Wattle, Pearl wattle
Acacia podalyriifolia
Family: Fabaceae or Leguminosae
What it is like
Acacia podalyriifolia is an evergreen Tree growing to 3 m (9ft) by 3 m (9ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 8. It is in leaf all year, in flower from January to May. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs). It can fix Nitrogen. Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid and neutral soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.
Height (m): 3
Where it is found
In the N of its range it is more or less restricted to sandstone hills in open Eucalyptus forest, but in the south it occurs on rocks of various types.
Australia - New South Wales, Queensland.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 1
Flowers - cooked. Rich in pollen, they are often used in fritters. The flowers have a delicate sweet perfume.
Medicine
Rating: 0
Other
Rating: 3
A yellow dye is obtained from the flowers. A green dye is obtained from the seed pods. When planted on steep slopes or other fragile soil systems, the extensive root system of this plant binds the soil together and helps to prevent erosion.
Dye: Plants that provide dyes.
Soil stabilization: Plants that can be grown in places such as sand dunes in order to prevent erosion by wind, water or other agents.
Nitrogen Fixer: Plants that fix nitrogen in the soil
Scented Plants: Plants noted for their scent
How it is grown
Prefers a sandy loam and a very sunny position. Succeeds in any good garden soil that is not excessively limey. Many members of this genus become chlorotic on limey soils. Can succeed in a hot dry position in a mixed border. Plants are not very cold-hardy, tolerating temperatures down to about -3°c. They succeed outdoors in the mildest areas of Britain, though even there they can be cut back to the ground in severe winters. A very ornamental tree, it can be pruned back hard after flowering in order to induce good flowering the following year. This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby.
Propagating it: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a sunny position in a warm greenhouse. Stored seed should be scarified, pre-soaked for 12 hours in warm water and then sown in a warm greenhouse in March. The seed germinates in 3 - 4 weeks at 25°c. As soon as the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots and grow them on in a sunny position in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts, and consider giving them some protection from the cold for their first winter outdoors. Cuttings of half-ripe wood with a heel, July/August in individual pots in a frame. Overwinter in a greenhouse for the first winter and plant out in their permanent positions in late spring or early summer. Fair percentage.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; South Wall. By. West Wall. By.
Habit: Tree
Hardiness: 7-10
Growth:
Soil: Light (sandy), medium
Shade: No shade
Moisture: Dry, moist