Acacia craspedocarpa

Botanical Name

Acacia craspedocarpa F. Mueller

Common Name(s)

  • leather-leaf acacia
  • hop mulga
  • broad-leaved mulga

Synonyms

Legume Clades

Caesalpinioideae , Mimosoid Clade , Core Mimosoids , Ingoid Clade , Archidendron Clade , Acacia

Native Geographic Range

  • Australia

IUCN Status

LC (Least concern)
See IUCN Red List Assessment

Growth Form

shrub

Cultivation Status in AZ

Commonly cultivated

Description

Evergreen, unarmed, rounded shrubs to 13 ft (4 m) high. The bark is gray and becomes finely fissured on older stems. Phyllodes (leaves) are dull grayish green, nearly rounded to obovate or oblong, and are ½--1 in (1.5—2.5 cm) long. Flowers are yellow and are produced in short, cylindrical inflorescences. Flowering take place in the late winter, spring, and early summer.

Habitat

Confined to a limited area of central Western Australia in arid desert habitats where it grows along watercourses and on plains.

Uses

None reported.

Horticulture

Leather-leaf acacia can be planted as a hedge or screen, and makes an interesting focal plant. It is ideally suited for street medians. With its rounded form, and gray-green foliage, the plants contrast well with a variety of desert landscape plants. This species is long-lived and drought-tolerant. Plants seem to tolerate a range of soil types including clay. Growth rate is generally slow. The flowers are dull yellow and not particularly attractive; appearing from winter to early summer. Cultivated plants have survived 16° F (-8.8° C) without damage. Litter and maintenance are minimal. Scarified seeds germinate readily.