Common name:
Vanilla-scented wattle
Family:
Scientific name:
Acacia redolens
Main flower color:
Range:
California, in the south and around the Bay Area (non-native)
Height:
Up to 14 feet
Habitat:
Roadsides, disturbed ground
Leaves:
Alternate, oblanceolate, greyish-green, strongly veined, untoothed, up to 3 inches long and 0.5 inches wide. On short stalks
Season:
February to May
Acacia redolens is an Australian species, naturalized in a few locations along the coast of southern California. Leaves are distinctive; flat, glaucous, angled about 90 degrees from the stem, and crossed by prominent parallel veins, between five and ten. Branches are woody, oily, unarmed, ridged, and have a faint vanilla scent.
The yellow flowers may be solitary or in elongated clusters (about as long as the leaves) of up to six, from the leaf nodes; they have five sepals, five inconspicuous petals and many stamens, these the most noticeable component. Fruits are brown, sickle-shaped pods, 1 to 2 inches long.
The yellow flowers may be solitary or in elongated clusters (about as long as the leaves) of up to six, from the leaf nodes; they have five sepals, five inconspicuous petals and many stamens, these the most noticeable component. Fruits are brown, sickle-shaped pods, 1 to 2 inches long.
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