Fruits/Seeds
Pods twisted or spirally coiled, slightly raised over seeds. Seeds longitudinal, more or less oblong and shiny dark brown.
Field Guide
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Gold-Dust Wattle
Bushy or straggly shrub, branchlets more or less angled at extremities, smooth or hairy. Bark is smooth, grey to brown. Commonly grows to 2.5 m high.
Leaves
Has phyllodes (flattened leaf stalks) that are rounded, usually asymmetric 0.4 – 1.5 cm long and 2 – 8 mm wide, hairy or smooth. Leaf midrib (large midline vein) is obscure or absent, lateral veins also absent.
Flowers
Bright yellow ball-shaped inflorescences (clusters flowers arranged on a stem) that form in patterns of 5. Flowers appear in late winter and spring and into early summer (July to November).
What to Observe
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First fully open single flower (each ‘flower ball’ is actually a cluster of 40-80 flowers)
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Full flowering (record all days)
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End of flowering (when 95% of the flowers have faded)
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No flowering
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Open Seed pods (record all days)
When and Where
When To Look
- From autumn throughout spring and early summer
- Flowering usually August – October
- Seed pods appear after flowers
Where To Look
- South Australia, Victoria, NSW and the Australian Capital Territory
- In the understorey of open forest or woodland and in open scrub formations
What Else?
They are tolerant of drought and frost.
A flower in an inflorescence are referred to as ‘florets’.
