Acacia smallii - Mimosaceae, Mimosa Family
Medium-sized tree to shrub; densely
branched; armed with long, paired, straight spines at bases of leaves.
Height: 15-30 feet.
Flowers: Very fragrant, bright
golden, round heads; mid-December to mid-March.
Fruit: 2 to 3 inch-long, black
Foliage: Deciduous, gray-green
Bark: Reddish-brown, forming
ridges andfurrows with age.
Growth rate. Rapid.
Drainage: Good to moderate;
tolerant of poor drainage.
Water: Moderate to low; drought
Maintenance: Prune saplings to
remove narrow crotch angles; avoid water logging; twig girdlers and
leaf-cutter ants favor.
Cover, nest sites; important nesting
tree for white-winged doves; browsed by wildlife and livestock; pollen, not
nectar, used by bees; small mammals eat seeds.
Pods used for ink, juice for pottery-
mending glue, bark for dying skins, flowers for perfumes; firewood; medicinal
values. Showy, glowing golden blooms with a magnificent perfume signals the
first sign of spring in the lower Rio Grande Valley; pioneer species, quick
shade as nurse tree; can be trimmed to dense shrub or sheared hedge.