Sydney golden wattle, Acacia longifolia, is a small tree that I absolutely love seeing in winter, so right now as I write. The main reason for this is the bright yellow flowers in combination with its green phyllodes, which is a flattened leaf stalk that acts like a leaf. The golden wattle is a widespread tree whose range extends from south-east Queensland in the north, through New South Wales and into Victoria and Tasmania. The binomial name, Acacia longifolia, has the following meaning:

• Acacia-from the Greek word ‘acis’ which means ‘a thorn’, in reference to the original type species for the Acacia genus which is Acacia nilotica.
• Longifolia-comes from two Latin words. The first is ‘longs’, meaning long or extended. The second is ‘folius’, meaning leaf. The name refers to the long phyllodes on the type species.

The are two sub-species. The first is subsp longifolia, which is a small tree that reaches six metres and has the longer phyllodes. The other is subsp sophorae that is shrub more prostrate in form, up to three metres in height. Its phyllodes are more oval-shaped and is mostly along the coast. With the second subspecies, some see it as a seperate species called Acacia sophorae.

The phyllodes are generally straight, the odd one being slightly curved. They reach a length of 4-20mm in length. The leaf veins are prominent along the length of the leaves.

The flowers are the star of the show with this wattle. Bright yellow in colour, the long spikes reach up to five centimetres in length. Flowering occurs from June through to October. Flowers are followed by pods that can be strongly twisted.

The native habitat of the golden wattle is the understory of schlerophyll forest in moist areas, in coastal heat/scrub/sand dunes and also in disturbed or cleared sections of land. As a cultivated tree, the golden wattle is often used as a street tree. Full sun to part shade are ideal as are most soils, provided the soil is free-draining.

Propagation of the golden wattle is through sowing seed. The seed needs to be pre-treated but either scarification, or by soaking in boiling water.

The golden wattle is a tree that would be in my garden, without having to think about it. I love this tree and would love to see more of them around.

Robinson, L., 2003, Third Edition, Field Guide to the Native Plants of Sydney, Simon & Schuster, Sydney

Fairley, A., & Moore, P., Third Edition, Native Plant of the Sydney Region, Allan & Unwin, Sydney

https://anpsa.org.au/plant_profiles/acacia-longifolia/

https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl%26lvl=sp%26name=Acacia~longifolia