The sunshine wattle, Acacia terminalis, is a wattle that with a range extending from Tasmania in the south to New South Wales in the north. the species can be found in open forest and woodland. While it is a fast growing species, it is often relatively short-lived due to the fact that is prone to borers. Don’t let that put you off as it is a lovely small tree that can reach up to five metres. The meaning of the binomial name is as follows:

• 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.
• Terminalis-the Latin word for terminal/at the end, likely referring to where the flowers sit on the branches.

Over its range the sunshine wattle can be quite variable. In some areas, it can be a small shrub to around a metre in height, while in the others it can reach the height of a small tree.

Sunshine wattle leaves are bipinnate and up to eight centimetres long. The upper leaf surface is dark green in colour, while the lower surface is paler.

Flowers appear in nine centimetre long racemes that hold between five and fifteen individual pale to bright yellow flowers. The individual flowers are globular in shape. The flowers appear in autumn and last through the winter. In Tasmania, a rare pink-flowered form of this species had been found, although it’s a shame I didn’t see any on my recent visit. Flowers are followed by seed pods that are wrinkled and reddish in colour.

Sunshine wattles can be grown from seed in the same way that most other species are-the seeds do need scarification first, either through soaking in boiling water or scratching the surface of the seed coat.

I love wattles, especially during the winter when a lot of them are in flower. The bright yellow flowers are a joy. I would love to have the sunshine wattle in my garden given an opportunity.