Scientific Name: Acacia mearnsii

Common Name: black wattle

Family Classification (Clade): Eudicots

Family: Fabaceae

Form Description: Small tree with smooth dark grey bark.

Height (m): 7 – 10

Flowers: Pale yellow globular heads of 20-30 flowers.

Fruit: Seed pod – dark brown, flat, slightly constricted between seeds.

Municipality
Break O’DayBrightonCentral CoastCentral HighlandsCircular HeadClarenceDerwent ValleyDevonportDorsetGeorge TownGlamorgan-Spring BayGlenorchyHobartKingboroughLatrobeLauncestonMeander ValleyNorthern MidlandsSorellSouthern MidlandsTasmanWest CoastWest Tamar
Plant Communities
Dry Eucalypt ForestGrassland
Habitat Notes

Frost and drought tolerant but sensitive to fire when young (less than three years). Adapts to a wide range of soils including relatively infertile sites. Will tolerate occasional inundation.

Site Tolerance

Dry, Moist, Shady

Soil Tolerance

Fertile, Loam, Nutrient-poor, Poorly-drained, Well-drained

Frost Tolerance

Hardy

General Notes

Useful as a medium-level cover in windbreaks. A good shade tree, useful in erosion control, due to its quick growth and ability to improve soil quality. Provides important structural diversity for nesting and foraging wildlife. Bee attracting. Important food source for sugar gliders. Often heavily infested with rust galls reducing future seed cropping potential. Susceptible to browsing by hares and rabbits. Resistant to Phytophthora cinnamomi. Moderate flammability. Leaves, flowers, seed pods and bark can be used in dyeing. Koori (mainland) use: it was an important source of gum, which was eaten or dissolved in water with flower nectar to make sweet drinks. When mixed with burnt mussel shell or wood ashes it formed a cement for water buckets made from the bark of the tree. The bark made fibre for coarse string.

Propagation Calendar

  • Flowering Month
    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
  • Seed Collecting Month
    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
  • Sowing Month
    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
  • Cutting Month
    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Propagation Method
Seed, Cuttings

Seed Information

Seed Collection

Most acacias are readily propagated by seed. Seed commonly dropped in Jan/Feb. Pods may take 14 months to mature. Good seed years are infrequent.

Seed Treatment Method

Hot Water Hot water is used to soften the hard seed case of some species. This replicates the weathering process. Pour hot (not boiling) water over the seeds and allow them to soak for 4-12 hours.

Seed Storage Life

Long

Seed Treatment Notes

Seed extraction is difficult. To successfully extract seed, pod must be just starting to open (listen for seeds rattling). Pour hot water (80-90°C) over the seed and allow to soak for 12 hours.

Germination Time

14 – 40 days

Cutting & Division Information

Cuttings are possible with “phyllode bearing” acacias, more so than with “feathery leaved” species.