This has to be one of my favourite trees, especially when in flower, from later winter to spring. It belongs to the plant family Fabaceae, subfamily Mimosoideae. The name Acacia comes from the Greek word ‘acis’ meaning thorn, while longifolia comes from the Latin words ‘longus’ that means long or extended and ‘folius’ referring to the shape of the phyllodes on the official description of the the tree.

It’s native to eastern Australia form SE Queensland to Tasmania. Acacia longifolia is common on the coastal areas and in the tablelands in this eastern part of Australia. Common habitats are in schlerophyll communities, coastal heath and scrub that includes sand dunes. It is a common understory species in moist forests and is also a pioneer species in cleared or disturbed areas.

There are two subspecies of this tree:

• Subspecies longifolia-a medium shrub to small tree to 6 metres tall with elongated phyllodes
• Subspecies sophorae-a medium shrub that can also be prostrate between two and three metres tall. Phyllodes are generally more ovate. This subspecies appears more frequently in coastal areas. Some people do list this species as a distinct species, Acacia soohorae.

The flowers are a fabulous bright yellow colour, appearing in an long spike from the axil of the phyllodes. They can be up to 50mm long, appearing from winter to spring (June to October here in Australia). They also have a really nice smell that fills the air, and is definitely one of my favourite plant smells.

Flowers are followed by seed pods that are straight or twisted and up to 15cm long and about 6cm wide.

Phyllodes can be straight or curved. They are 4-20cm long and between 4-mm wide. They have three prominent veins rinning along their length. A phyllode is a flattened stem that looks like a leaf.

In cultivation, both subspecies make good garden plants. They are happy in any soil provided that it isn’t waterlogged. They also need full sun to part shade.

There are several uses for this tree:

• Hardy in Australia, so is good for the often tough conditions here.
• A good street tree, especially with its bright showy flowers
• As it is opportunistic, it colonises bare patches of ground quickly, especially useful for use in its native habitat regeneration
• For Indigenous Australian people, various parts have been used for food
• Early European settlers used the bark as a tea substitute and medicinally for diarrhoea and dysentryl
• Native Australian gardens

Do be wary in western Victoria, South Australia and southern Western Australia where this species is an environmental weed. In these areas, there will be some other equally amazing species of acacia endemic to each specific area.

• All photos are my own
• Https://anpsa.org.au/plant_profiles/acacia_longifolia. Accessed 30/07/23
• Robinson, L., Field Guide to the Native Plants of Sydney
• Https://PlantNet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au. Accessed 30/07/23