font settings and languages

Font Size: Large | Normal | Small
Font Face: Verdana | Geneva | Georgia
Languages:

Acacia confusa

(Small Philippine Acacia)

Overview

[ Back to top ]

Tree from the Philippines and Taiwan with sickle-shaped leaves similar to koa but shorter and straighter. The tiny flowers are congested in conspicuous bright yellow heads about 1/2 inch in diameter.

Common Names

[ Back to top ]

Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in Carolinian:

Soschghi

Common Names in Chamorro:

Boiffuring, Shoshigi, Sosigi, Sosugi

Common Names in English:

Acacia Petit Feuille, Boiffuring, Formosa Acacia, Formosa Koa, Formosan Koa, Ianangi, Mimosa, Pilampwoia, Shoshigi, Small Philippine Acacia, Sosigi, Sosugi, Yanagi

Common Names in Informal Latinized N:

Acacia Petit Feuille

Description

[ Back to top ]

Family Fabaceae

The Fabaceae are herbs, vines , shrubs , trees , and lianas found in both temperate and tropical areas. They comprise one of the largest families of flowering plants , numbering 630 genera and 18,000 species. The leaves are stipulate , nearly always alternate, and range from bipinnately or palmately compound to simple . The petiole base is commonly enlarged into a pulvinus that commonly functions in orientation of the leaves (sometimes very responsively, as in the sensitive plant, Mimosa pudica). The flowers are usually bisexual , actinomorphic to zygomorphic, slightly to strongly perigynous, and commonly in racemes , spikes, or heads . The perianth commonly consists of a calyx and corolla of 5 segments each. The androecium consists of commonly 1- many stamens (most commonly 10), distinct or variously united , sometimes some of them reduced to staminodes. The pistil is simple, often stipitate , comprising a single style and stigma, and a superior ovary with one locule containing 2-many marginal ovules. The fruit is usually a legume, sometimes a samara, loment, follicle, indehiscent pod, achene, drupe, or berry. The seeds often have a hard coat with hourglass-shaped cells , and sometimes bear a u-shaped line called a pleurogram. [Carr]

Subfamily Mimosoideae

Mostly trees or shrubs . Leaves mostly bipinnate. Corolla usually not showy, actinomorphic , sympetalous , the lobes valvate . Stamens 10-numerous, often monadelphous , showy. Pollen released in monads , tetrads , or polyads . Seeds with u-shaped line (pleurogram) present. [Carr]

Genus Acacia

Trees , shrubs , rarely herbs, often prickly or spinose . Leaves bipinnate; leaflets small and numerous or leaves reduced to phyllodes; petiolar glands often present; stipules generally spinescent . Inflorescence cylindric spike or globose head ; peduncle solitary axillary or fasciculate or paniculate at the end of branches; bracts often two, scale like, situated on the peduncle at various levels. Flowers small, 3-5-merous, bisexual or plants polygamous. Calyx campanulate , dentate , lobed or polysepalous . Petals usually more or less united , rarely absent. Stamens indefinite, free or shortly and irregularly connate at the base ; anthers small, eglandular . Ovary sessile or stipitate , with 2 or more ovules. Fruit ovate to linear , straight, arcuate or contorted, membranous to woody, rarely articulated or moniliform . Seed large, with a filiform funicle or fleshy aril.

A genus with about 900 species; distributed mainly in tropics and subtropics, especially in Africa and Australia.[1]

Physical Description

Species Acacia confusa

Small tree ; adult foliage of falcate phyllodes, juvenile and sucker-shoot foliage of bipinnate leaves; trunk up to 1 m thick in very old trees; phyllodes alternate, coriaceous , parallel-curving-veined, 8-10 cm long, narrowed at both ends; flowers yellow, in small globose heads 6-8 mm in diameter; heads 1 or 2 in axil of phyllode; pods few together, linear or somewhat curved , flat or slightly twisted, brown, 5-10 cm long, 1 cm broad or a little more or less, with about 8 seeds; seeds compressed , brown (Stone , 1970, in PIER , 2002). The leaves are apparently allelopathic since the ground underneath these trees is free of weeds , (© 1999-2003 Shaman Australis Botanicals ).

Habit: Tree

Flowers: Bloom Period: March, April, May, June, July, August, September. • Flower Color: yellow

Size/Age/Growth

Size: 30-40' tall.

Habitat

Grows well between sea level in both dry and mesic habitats . Will often resprout after fire. In Hawai'i, it was planted for windbreaks on Maui and has since formed monotypic stands at lower elevations and continues to spread up to 1000 m (Randy Bartlett, communication on Aliens list server , in: PIER , 2003).

Biome: disturbed areas

Ecology: Forms monotypic stands (PIER , 2003).

Biology

[ Back to top ]

Reproduction

Seeds present in the ground can germinate profusely after fire. Can be reproduced from cuttings. Spread through forestry and ornamental plantings . (PIER , 2003)

Duration: Perennial

Growth

Soil: Minimum pH: 5.6 • Maximum pH: 7.5

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full sun .

Moisture: Drought Tolerance: High

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b, 11. (map)

Taxonomy

[ Back to top ]

Unambiguous Synonyms

  1. Racosperma confusum (Merr.) Pedley
  2. Racosperma confusum (Merr.)pedley

Misapplied Names

  1. Acacia richii A.Gray

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: Rico M .L., 1994

Place of publication : Philipp. J. Sci., C 5:27. 1910

Name verified on 28-Oct-1988 by ARS Systematic Botanists. Last updated: 12-Jan-2001

Similar Species

[ Back to top ]

Members of the genus Acacia

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 2783 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

A. abbatiana · A. abbreviata · A. abietina · A. abrupta · A. abstergens · A. abyssinica (Nyanga Flat-Top) · A. abyssinica abyssinica · A. abyssinica calophylla · A. acanthaster · A. acanthocarpa · A. acanthoclada (Harrow Wattle) · A. acanthoclada acanthoclada · A. acanthoclada glaucescens · A. acanthoclada subsp. glaucescens · A. acanthoclada var. glaucescens (Harrow Wattle) · A. acantholoba · A. acanthophora · A. acanthophylla · A. acapulcensis · A. acatlensis · A. accola · A. acellerata · A. acicularis · A. acinacea (Round-Leaved Wattle) · A. acinacea 'Ruby Tips' · A. acinacea var. brevipedunculata · A. aciphylla · A. acoma · A. acradena · A. acradenia · A. acrionastes · A. acuaria · A. acuifera · A. aculeaticarpa (Catclaw Mimosa) · A. aculeatissima (Thin-Leaf Wattle) · A. aculeiformis · A. acuminata (Raspberry Jam) · A. acuminata acuminata (Raspberry Jam) · A. acuminata burkittii · A. acutangula · A. acutata · A. acutifolia · A. acutistipula · A. adansonii · A. adenanthera · A. adenantheroides · A. adenocalyx · A. adenocarpa · A. adenogonia · A. adenopa · A. adenophora · A. adenostylis · A. adhaerens · A. adherens · A. adiantoides · A. adinophylla · A. adnata · A. adoxa · A. adoxa var. adoxa · A. adoxa var. subglabra · A. adpressa · A. adstringens · A. adsurgens · A. adunca (Wallangarra Wattle) · A. aegyptiaca · A. aemula · A. aemula aemula · A. aemula muricata · A. aemula subsp. muricata · A. aestivalis · A. alata (Winged Wattle) · A. alata var. alata · A. alata var. biglandulosa · A. alata var. glabrata · A. alata var. platyptera · A. alata var. tetrantha · A. alaticaulis · A. alba · A. albescens · A. albicans · A. albicorticata (Espinillo Blanco) · A. albida · A. albizioides (Climbing Wattle) · A. albocorticata · A. alcockii · A. alemquerensis · A. alexandri · A. alleniana · A. allenii · A. alliacea · A. alocophylla · A. alpina (Alpine Wattle) · A. altiscandens · A. alvaroi · A. amabilis · A. amambayensis · A. amanda · A. amazonica · A. ambigua · A. amblygona (Fan Wattle)

More Info

[ Back to top ]

Further Reading

[ Back to top ]

Notes

[ Back to top ]

Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 15, 2007:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. "Acacia". in Flora of Pakistan. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
Last Revised: 7/1/2009