Acacia baileyana

Acacia baileyana is a shrub or tree that typically grows to a height of {{cvt|3–10|m}} and has smooth, grey or brown bark. Its leaves are more or less sessile, somewhat leathery, glaucous with mostly two to four pairs of oblong to narrowly oblong pinnae {{cvt|5–8|mm}} long and {{cvt|0.7–1.0|mm}} wide. The flowers are borne in spherical heads in racemes in leaf axils, {{cvt|30–100|mm}} long and much longer than the leaves. The heads are on peduncles {{cvt|3–7|mm}} long, each head {{cvt|3.5–7|mm}} long with 11 to 25 bright yellow to golden flowers. Flowering occurs from June to September and the pods are leathery, straight, more or less flat and straight-sided, {{cvt|30–100|mm}} long and {{cvt|7.5–15|mm}} wide.{{cite web |title=Acacia baileyana |url=https://worldwidewattle.com/speciesgallery/baileyana.php |publisher=World Wide Wattle |access-date=3 March 2025}}{{cite web |last1=Kodela |first1=Phillip G. |title=Acacia baileyana |url=https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Acacia~baileyana |publisher=Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney |access-date=3 March 2025}}{{cite web |last1=Entwisle |first1=Timothy J. |last2=Maslin |first2=Bruce R. |last3=Cowan |first3=Richard S. |last4=Court |first4=Arthur B. |title=Acacia baileyana |url=https://vicflora.rbg.vic.gov.au/flora/taxon/238b3bfd-4a0c-4638-b928-485897ec580d |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria |access-date=3 March 2025}}

Acacia baileyana was first formally described in 1888 by Ferdinand von Mueller on the Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria.{{cite web |title=Acacia baileyana |url=https://biodiversity.org.au/nsl/services/rest/instance/apni/463268 |publisher=Australian Plant Name Index |access-date=3 March 2025}}{{cite journal |last1=von Mueller |first1=Ferdinand |title=Descriptions of some hitherto unknown Australian plants. |journal=Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria |date=1888 |volume=24 |issue=2 |pages=168–172 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/109519#page/214/mode/1up |access-date=4 March 2025}} The specific epithet (baileyana) honour Frederick Manson Bailey, who sent the type specimens to von Mueller.

Cootamundra wattle is edemic to the Temora-Cootamundra district where it grows in open forest, woodland and mallee in stony soils on creek flats and hilly country.{{cite web |title=Acacia baileyana |url=https://anpsa.org.au/plant_profiles/acacia-baileyana/ |publisher=Australian Native Plants Society (Australia) |access-date=4 March 2025}}

Acacia baileyana is often naturalised on roadsides, along railways in disturbed bushland and in urban areas in all mainland states of Australia.{{FloraBase|name=Acacia baileyana|id=18285}} and is an environmental weed in some places.{{FloraBase|name=Acacia baileyana|id=18285}}{{cite web |title=Species profile—Acacia baileyana (Cootamundra wattle) |url=https://apps.des.qld.gov.au/species-search/details/?id=14060 |publisher=Queensland Government Department of Education and Science |access-date=4 March 2025}}

Acacia baileyana is used in Europe in the cut flower industry. It is also used as food for bees in the production of honey.{{cite web |title=Uses of Australian Acacias |date=29 May 2013 |work=World Wide Wattle |url=http://www.worldwidewattle.com/infogallery/utilisation/summary.php}} American urban landscape designer Renée Gunter uses this plant in her South Los Angeles lawn as a drought-resistant alternative to thirstier plants.Lodi News-Sentinel, Oct 12, 2007, Bettijane Levine, Los Angeles Times, [https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=20071012&id=DP1RAAAAIBAJ&sjid=hjQNAAAAIBAJ&pg=5824,5222641 Drought resistant plants], Retrieved Aug. 18, 2007

This plant is adaptable and easy to grow. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.{{cite web |title=Acacia baileyana AGM |work=Plant Selector |publisher=Royal Horticultural Society |url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=2085 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121224043928/http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=2085 |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 24, 2012 }} Unfortunately, it has an ability to naturalise (i.e. escape) into surrounding bushland. Also, it hybridises with some other wattles, notably the rare and endangered Sydney Basin species Acacia pubescens.

A prostrate weeping form is in cultivation. Its origin is unknown, but it is a popular garden plant, with its cascading horizontal branches good for rockeries.{{harvnb|Stewart|2001|p=156}} The fine foliage of the original Cootamundra wattle is grey-green, but a blue-purple foliaged form, known as 'Purpurea' is very popular.{{harvnb|Stewart|2001|p=157}}

image:Cootamundra leaves and blossom.jpg|Leaf and blossom

image:Cootamundra wattle leaves 2.jpg|Fine detail of leaf

image:Cootamundra wattle leaves.jpg|Leaf with fingers for scale

Image:Acacia baileyana seeds.jpg|Seeds

Image:Acacia baileyana prostrate IGP email.jpg|Prostrate form in cultivation, Illawarra Grevillea Park

image:Acacia baileyana Los Angeles.jpg|Street tree, Los Angeles

Image:Acacia baileyana inflorescences Girraween National Park Wyberba Queensland 1980s IMG 0082 (4).jpg|Inflorescences and foliage

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• {{cite book |last=Stewart |first=Angus |author-link= Angus Stewart|title=Gardening on the Wild Side |year=2001 |publisher=ABC Books |location=Sydney |isbn=978-0-7333-0791-1 }}

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{{Taxonbar|from=Q9562555}}

baileyana

Category:Fabales of Australia

Category:Flora of New South Wales

Category:Garden plants of Australia

Category:Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller

Category:Plants described in 1888