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Rasp-stemmed wattle facts for kids

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Rasp-stemmed wattle
Scientific classification
Genus:
Acacia
Species:
gonophylla
Acacia gonophyllaDistMap399.png
Occurrence data from AVH

The rasp-stemmed wattle (scientific name: Acacia gonophylla) is a type of shrub. It belongs to the Acacia family, also known as wattles. This plant grows naturally only in the southwestern parts of Australia. This means it is "endemic" to that area.

What the Rasp-Stemmed Wattle Looks Like

This plant is a low, spreading shrub with many branches. It usually grows between 0.1 and 1.0 meter (about 4 inches to 3 feet) tall. Its small branches are ribbed and smooth, meaning they have no hairs. They also have tiny leaf-like parts called stipules that fall off early.

The leaves of the rasp-stemmed wattle are not typical flat leaves. Instead, they have special leaf-like structures called phyllodes. These phyllodes are green and stand upright. They are often slightly curved and have five clear, raised lines or "nerves" on them. Each phyllode is about 2 to 4.5 centimeters long and 1 to 1.5 millimeters wide.

Flowers and Seeds

The rasp-stemmed wattle produces pretty cream-yellow flowers. You can usually see these flowers from May to October. The flowers grow in small groups of one to three. Each group forms a tiny cluster called a raceme, which is about 1 to 5 millimeters long.

The flower-heads are round, like small balls, and are about 5 millimeters wide. Each flower-head contains 12 to 21 flowers that are cream to pale yellow. After the flowers, the plant forms long, flat seed pods. These pods are dark red-brown and can grow up to 8 centimeters long and 3 to 4 millimeters wide. Inside the pods are shiny black seeds. The seeds are shaped like oblongs or ellipses and are about 3 to 4 millimeters long.

How Scientists Name and Classify This Plant

Scientists use a system called taxonomy to name and group all living things. The rasp-stemmed wattle was first officially described in 1855. A botanist named George Bentham gave it the scientific name Acacia gonophylla. He wrote about it in a scientific paper called Plantae Muellerianae: Mimoseae.

Later, in 2003, another botanist named Leslie Pedley reclassified it. He moved it to a different group and called it Racosperma gonophyllum. However, in 2006, scientists decided to move it back to the Acacia group. So, its official name is still Acacia gonophylla.

Where the Rasp-Stemmed Wattle Grows

The rasp-stemmed wattle is found along the southern coast of Western Australia. It grows in specific areas like the Goldfields-Esperance and Great Southern regions. You can find it from the Stirling Ranges in the north, down to Albany in the west, and as far east as Israelite Bay.

This plant likes to grow on flat areas, plains, and sand dunes. It prefers soils that are sandy and gravelly, often with a type of clay called laterite or a rock called quartz. It usually grows as part of plant communities like heathlands, mallee woodlands, or open Eucalyptus woodlands.

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