The variety of shape and texture is surprising. The phyllodinous acacias are quite successfully grown from cuttings and, if you want to grow more of a favourite plant, this is the only way to go. Unfortunately, hybridisation takes place in our gardens so you can't rely on the seed coming true to type from that source. The ferny leaved species appear to be much more difficult to strike as the tiny leaflets tend to fall off quickly and the cutting soon dies. Acacias overseas For some years certain species of Acacia , usually from dry zones of northern Australia, have been selected for plantation trials in Asia, Africa and India.
Special regard is paid to selecting the provenance to match the climate and soils of the trial area.
Some of our acacias that meet these criteria are A.colei, A.coriacea and A.Iigulata , but many more are under trial. Traditionally Australian Aborigines used many native plants and still do in a minor way. However, where acacias are concerned, most published information refers to mainland dry-area species. A fairly new publication. A small but growing industry is using wattle seeds in a variety of foods, including biscuits, ice cream and chocolate.