Acacia

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Acacia
Acacia aulacocarpa

Acacia aulacocarpa

Systematics
Eurosiden I
Order : Fabales (Fabales)
Family : Legumes (Fabaceae)
Subfamily : Mimosa family (Mimosoideae)
Tribe : Acacias (Acacieae)
Genre : Acacia
Scientific name
Acacia
Mill.

The plant genus Acacia belongs to the subfamily Mimosa Family (Mimosoideae) within the family of legumes (Fabaceae). The approximately 950 species today are mainly found in Australia .

Confusion of names like acacia and mimosa

The species of the tribe Acacieae are called acacias , i.e. the species of the genera Acacia , Acaciella , Mariosousa , Senegalia and Vachellia .

In the vernacular, the name "acacia" is often transferred to the robinia . The tribe Acacieae and the genus Robinia are not closely related and belong to different subfamilies of the Fabaceae . Species of the Acacieae tribe, which are often planted as ornamental trees in warmer regions, are often called "mimosas" there. However, the real mimosa ( Mimosa pudica ) is a short-lived subshrub with pink-colored, head-shaped inflorescences.

Description and ecology

Bark of Acacia pendula
Branch with stipule thorns (therefore one pair each) and phyllodes of the kangaroo thorn ( Acacia paradoxa )
Branches with leaves, differently shaped Phyllodien of: Illustration Acacia alata var. Platyptera , B Acacia lineata , C verticillata Acacia , D kangaroo mandrel ( Acacia paradoxa ), E Acacia truncata , F Acacia spectabilis
Illustration of Acacia longifolia
Seeds with Arillus the gold acacia ( Acacia pycnantha )

Appearance

Acacia species are rarely trees , mostly shrubs . Some species have thorns . Acacia species are hardwoods . The roots of acacia species form a symbiosis with nodule bacteria ( Rhizobium spec.) , With the help of which they make air nitrogen available to plants.

Leaves and stipules

They rarely shed their leaves in the dry season, mostly they are evergreen. Many acacia species have heterophyllia . Young specimens often have deciduous leaves with a normal petiole and double-pinnate leaf blade. Then there is sometimes a transitional stage in which the petiole is already flattened, but there is still a more or less large pinnate leaf blade. Usually, at least in fully grown specimens, the petiole is flattened and it takes over the photosynthesis function, there are no leaf blades, this is called phyllodium . The shape of the phyllodes is very different. Phyllodes are in most of the Acacia s. st. present, on the other hand have most of Acacia s. l. outsourced species, the leaves are usually fully developed double-pinnate leaf blades even on grown specimens.

There are two stipules which fall off early or are persistent; mostly they are small, scale-shaped or transformed into thorns.

Inflorescences and flowers

At the ends of the branches are, on either side in bundle inflorescences or individually on inflorescence shafts or sitting, spherical, capped , cylindrical eared or racemose inflorescences , in which many flowers are usually tightly packed together. Each flower stands over a small, brownish, spatula or shield-shaped, nailed wrapper.

The relatively small flowers are radial symmetry , four or five-fold and mostly hermaphroditic with a double flower envelope . The color of the flowers ranges from deep yellow to creamy white, very rarely they are red. The four or five sepals and petals can be free or fused. The many stamens arising below or just above the base of the carpel protrude above the bracts . The carpel is hairy or bald or downy. There are many ovules . The thin stylus protrudes over the stamens. The flowers often give off a strong fragrance and produce plenty of pollen, which attracts bees .

Fruits and seeds

The legumes are linear to oblong, straight to curved or spirally twisted, round or flattened in cross section. The seeds are elongated, almost spherical or flattened egg-shaped and have an aril . The seeds are usually viable for a long time, and some require fire to germinate.

Occurrence

Of the approximately 950 Acacia species, almost all are only found on the Australian continent. Only about a dozen species are found in other areas of Australasia . Acacia species are found in all Australian states. They thrive from the coastal areas to the mountains and in the arid inland. Acacia species are represented as dominant floral elements throughout the Australian vegetation , especially in the arid to semi-arid areas.

Illustration by W.Miller from Acacia verticillata
Illustration: branches with inflorescences and legumes, flowers in detail from Acacia tetragonophylla

Systematics

The genus name Acacia was first published in 1754 by Philip Miller in The Gardeners Dictionary Abridged , 4th edition . The generic name Acacia is derived from the Greek word akakia for the Arabic rubber acacia ( Acacia nilotica , now a synonym for Vachellia nilotica (L.) PJHHurter & Mabb. ), Which is derived from ake or akis for sharp point or thorn, akazo for sharpen derives. Synonyms for Acacia Mill. Are: Acaciopsis Britton & Rose , Bahamia Britton & Rose , Delaportea Thorel ex Gagnep. , Fishlockia Britton & Rose , Manganaroa Speg. , Myrmecodendron Britton & Rose , Nimiria Prain ex Craib , Poponax Raf. , Racosperma Mart. , Siderocarpos Small , Tauroceras Britton & Rose .

The genus Acacia belongs to the tribe Acacieae in the subfamily of the Mimosoideae within the family of the Fabaceae .

The genus Acacia has historically been divided into three sub-genera and sections since Pedley 1978:

  • Subgenus Acacia
  • Subgenus Aculeiferum Vassal with the sections:
    • Section Spiciflorae DC.
    • Filicinae section
  • Subgenus Phyllodineae (DC.) Ser. with the sections:
    • Section Alatae F.Muell.
    • Section Botrycephalae (Benth.) Deaf.
    • Section Juliflorae F.Muell.
    • Section Lycopodiifoliae Pedley
    • Section Phyllodineae DC.
    • Section Plurinerves F.Muell.
    • Section Pulchellae (Benth.) Deaf.

From the genus Acacia s. l. (at that time 1350 to 1450 species) about 400 species were separated into smaller genera. And so the already very old subdivision of the genus is no longer relevant. The former subgenus Acacia and Aculeiferum are no longer applicable . Their species were assigned to the new genera.

In 2003, at the meeting of the Nomenclature Section of the XVII International Botanical Congress in Vienna, Orchard & Maslin identified Acacia penninervis Sieber ex DC as a new type . who have favourited Acacia nilotica (L.) Willd. ex Delile replaced, proposed and published in The official report of the Spermatophyta Committee, with detailed discussion of the reasons for their decision , In: Taxon , Volume 53, Number 3, August 1, 2004, pp. 826-829, this is valid since July 30, 2005. This was done so that nearly 950 Australian species remain in the genus Acacia .

The new genera are:

  • Acacia Mill. S. str .: Even after almost 400 species have been spun off, it is one of the most species-rich genus of the Fabaceae family. Today it contains about 948 species mainly in Australia, but also seven on Pacific islands, one or two in Madagascar and ten in tropical Asia. Today it is divided into six sub-genera:
    • Alatae
    • Botrycephalae
    • Juliflorae
    • Lycopodiifoliae
    • Phyllodinae
    • Plurinerves
    • Pulchellae

Some of the species that have been classified in new genera, see under: Acacias (Acacieae)

  • Acaciella Britton & Rose (formerly Acacia subg. Aculeiferum sect. Filicinae ): The approximately 15 species are common in the Neotropic.
  • Mariosousa Seigler & Ebinger : The approximately 13 species are common in the Neotropic.
  • Senegalia Raf. (formerly Acacia subg. Aculeiferum ): It is pantropical with 203 species.
  • Vachellia Wight & Arn. (formerly Acacia subg. Acacia , Syn .: Acaciopsis Britton & Rose , Bahamia Britton & Rose , Fishlockia Britton & Rose , Myrmecodendron Britton & Rose , Poponax Raf. , Tauroceras Britton & Rose ): It is pantropically distributed with 163 species.
Branch with phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of Acacia acanthoclada
Phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of Acacia heterophylla
Branch with phyllodes and cylindrical inflorescences of Acacia longifolia
Branch with phyllodes and cylindrical inflorescences of Acacia obtusifolia
Branch with phyllodes and cylindrical inflorescences of Acacia oxycedrus .
Pinnate leaves and capiform inflorescences of Acacia parramattensis
Branch with phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of Acacia pendula .
Branch with phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of Acacia penninervis
Branch with phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of Acacia podalyriifolia
Habitus, phyllodes and inflorescences of Acacia prominens
Phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of the golden acacia ( Acacia pycnantha )
Habit and inflorescences of the ever-flowering acacia ( Acacia retinodes )
Branch with phyllodes and inflorescences of Acacia rostellifera
Open legumes with seeds of Acacia salicina .
Phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of the willow-leaf acacia ( Acacia saligna )
Pinnate leaves and capitulate inflorescences of Acacia schinoides
Branch with pinnate leaves and capitula-shaped inflorescences of Acacia spectabilis
Branch with phyllodes and inflorescences of Acacia spirorbis
Habit and articulated legumes of Acacia stenophylla
Branch with phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of Acacia stricta
Branch with phyllodes and inflorescences of Acacia suaveolens
Pinnate leaves and capitulate inflorescences of Acacia terminalis
Phyllodes, head-shaped inflorescences, and legumes of Acacia tetragonophylla
Bi-pinnate leaves and inflorescences of Acacia trachyphloia
Phyllodes and inflorescences of Acacia triptera
Branch with head-shaped inflorescences of Acacia ulicifolia
Phyllodes and head-shaped inflorescences of Acacia verniciflua
Phyllodes and inflorescences of Acacia verticillata
Acacia victoriae buds and bloomed cephaliform inflorescences

Species in Acacia s. st.

There are in the genus Acacia s. st. about 950 species:

National plant

The golden acacia ( Acacia pycnantha ), called the Golden Wattle in Australia, is the national plant of Australia .

use

Of some species, such as Acacia spirorbis which is wood used. "Bablah" or "Babul", a tanning agent for leather, zebu hides (kipsen), is made from the pods and bark of Acacia nilotica .

Some species are used as ornamental plants . In Central and Western Europe, however, they only thrive in very few places with a particularly mild climate.

Acacia tenuissima seeds were collected in the Pilbara region by Aboriginal people and used to make damper (a type of traditional Australian bread).

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General
Historical literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Manfred A. Fischer , Wolfgang Adler, Karl Oswald (arrangement): Exkursionsflora for Austria, Liechtenstein and South Tyrol . 2nd Edition. Upper Austrian State Museums, Linz 2005, ISBN 3-85474-140-5 , p. 548 : "... Genus Acacia (real acacia) ...: flowering branches in our flower trade under the false name 'Mimosa'."
  2. ^ A b Electronic Flora of South Australia genus Fact Sheet : Acacia .
  3. ^ Philip Miller: The Gardeners Dictionary , 4th edition, 1754 at Google Books Online.
  4. ^ A b c Acacia in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), USDA , ARS , National Genetic Resources Program. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland. Retrieved August 1, 2013.
  5. ↑ a b WorldWideWattle
  6. ↑ a b BR Maslin, JT Miller & DS Seigler: Overview of the generic status of Acacia (Leguminosae: Mimosoideae) , In: Australian Systematic Botany , Volume 16, Issue 1, 2003, pp. 1-18. doi : 10.1071 / SB02008
  7. ^ A b RK Brummitt: Report of the Committee for Spermatophyta: 55. Proposal 1584 on Acacia , In: Taxon , Volume 53, Issue 3, 2004, pp. 826-829.
  8. ^ A b David S. Seigler, John E. Ebinger & Joseph T. Miller: Mariosousa, a New Segregate Genus from Acacia sl (Fabaceae, Mimosoideae) from Central and North America. In: Novon , Volume 16, Issue 3, 2006 pp. 413-420. doi : 10.3417 / 1055-3177 (2006) 16 [413: MANSGF] 2.0.CO; 2
  9. ^ The name Acacia retained for Australian species from the Center for Plant Biodiversity Research - CPBR.
  10. ↑ a b B. Kyalangalilwa & JS Boatwright: Phylogenetic position and revised classification of Acacia sl (Fabaceae: Mimosoideae) in Africa, including new combinations in Vachellia and Senegalia , In: Bot. J. Linn. Soc. , Volume 172, 2013, pp. 500-523.
  11. ↑ DS Seigler & JE Ebinger: New combinations in the genus Vachellia (Fabaceae: Mimosoideae) from the New World , In: Phytologia , Volume 87, 2006, pp. 139-178.
  12. ↑ M. Bergmann, H. Gnamm, W. Vogel: The tanning with vegetable tanning agents: Gerbmittel und Gerbverfahren. Volume 2, Springer, 1931, ISBN 978-3-7091-5982-8 , pp. 84 f.
  13. ↑ For example in southern Ticino and in the south-west of England. Acacias can not only be cultivated there for horticultural purposes, but also occasionally grow wild or even establish themselves. Konrad Lauber, Gerhart Wagner: Flora Helvetica . 4th edition. Haupt-Verlag, Bern / Stuttgart / Vienna 2007, ISBN 978-3-258-07205-0 , p. 578 No. 1080 a : "Acacia dealbata: Wildering in the southern TI." - David Aeschimann, Konrad Lauber, Daniel Martin Moser, Jean-Paul Theurillat: Flora alpina. An atlas of all 4500 vascular plants in the Alps . tape 1 . Haupt-Verlag, Bern / Stuttgart / Vienna 2004, ISBN 3-258-06600-0 , p. 816–817 (marked in the distribution map for the canton of Ticino and the province of Como.). - Clive Stace: New Flora of the British Isles . 2nd Edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge u. a. 1997, p. 398 (English): “Acacia melanoxylon: grown for ornament; locally +/- naturalized in South Devon and Scillies. - Other species: A few species are grown for ornament in SW England and may sometimes spread very locally by suckers or produce young seedlings, but are not truly naturalized. " - These places correspond roughly to winter hardiness zone 9 in Andreas Roloff, Andreas Bärtels: Flora der Gehölze. Purpose, properties and use . 2nd Edition. Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-8001-4832-5 , pp. Map on the front flyleaf . Acacias are not dealt with in this book because they are not “viable” in German-speaking countries (foreword, p. 7). In France, accordingly, nine Acacia species are specified for the coastal areas of Provence and Corsica: Jean-Marc Tison, Bruno de Foucault, Société botanique de France: Flora Gallica. Flore de France . 1st edition, 2nd printing (with numerous corrections). Biotope Éditions, Mèze 2014, ISBN 978-2-36662-012-2 , p. 708-709 (French).
  14. ↑ Factsheet Acacia tenuissima . In: Wattles of the Pilbara . Department of Environment and Conservation . 2010. Retrieved November 16, 2018.

Web links

Commons : Acacia  - album with pictures, videos and audio files