Acacia holosericea A.Cunn. ex G.Don, Fabaceae

Click on an image for links to BIGGER PICTURES

Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Evaluate, score: 4 (Go to the risk assessment)

Other Latin names:  Racosperma holosericeum (A. Cunn. ex G. Don) Pedley

Common name(s): [more details]

English: candelabra wattle, fish-poison wattle, silver-leaved wattle, soap bush

Habit:  shrub/tree

Description:  "Shrub or tree 3-8 m high. Branchlets acutely angled but normally ±terete by 20-30 cm below apex, usually sericeous, sometimes glabrous. Young shoots silvery sericeous, sometimes glabrous. Phyllodes obliquely narrowly elliptic, 10-20 cm long, normally 2-5 cm wide, with unequal base, usually sericeous; mucro 1-3 mm long; normally 3 prominent nerves per face confluent and contiguous with abaxial margin at base; minor nerves forming a somewhat open longitudinally orientated reticulum; glands basal and at base of mucro on at least some phyllodes. Inflorescences rudimentary racemes with axes to 0.5 mm long; peduncles 3-7 mm long, sericeous, sometimes glabrous; spikes normally 2-4 cm long, golden; bracteoles linear-spathulate, 1-1.5 mm long. Flowers 5-merous; sepals united. Pods tightly and often somewhat irregularly coiled, 2.5-4 mm wide, thinly crustaceous to coriaceous-crustaceous, ±glabrous, remaining as entangled clumps following dehiscence. Seeds longitudinal, oblong-elliptic, 3.5 mm long, shiny, dark brown; aril bright yellow"  (Flora of Australia online).

Habitat/ecology:  In Australia, "grows in sometimes gravelly sand or loam, commonly forming communities along watercourses"  (Flora of Australia online).  "Altitude: 150-450 m, Mean annual temperature: 19.5-34.7 deg. C, Mean annual rainfall: 600-1 200 mm.  Soil type: Grows on a wide range of soils from shallow acidic sandy lithosols, shallow loams, red volcanic and solodized solonets soils"  (Agroforestree database).

Propagation:  Seed.  "The early and abundant seeding of A. holosericea has the potential of making it a weed.  Seed dispersal is prompted by propulsion from drying dehiscent pods. Browsing vertebrates sometimes also play a role in seed dispersal"  (Agroforestree database).

Native range:  Australia (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Cook Islands Southern Cook Islands	Mangaia Island	introduced cultivated	McCormack, Gerald (2013)
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Nuku Hiva (Nukahiva) Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013) Cultivée
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island		Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.) (1975) (voucher ID: BISH 409759) Taxon name on voucher: Acacia holosericea A.Cunn. ex G.Don
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	Australia (continental)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013) Western Australia
Australia Australia (continental)	Northern Territory	native	Australian Biological Resources Study (2013)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	native	Australian Biological Resources Study (2013)
Negara Brunei Darussalam Brunei	Brunei (Negara Brunei Darussalam)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 9) Cultivated only

Control:  If you know of control methods for Acacia holosericea, please let us know.