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Fabaceae FAMILY

Acacia hemiteles

Acacia hemiteles

Edibility
3/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

The seed of many Acacia species, including this one, is edible and highly nutritious, and can be eaten safely as a fairly major part of the diet. Not all species are edible, however, and some can contain moderate levels of toxins[1]. Especially when harvesting from the wild, especial care should be taken to ensure correct identification of any plants harvested for food[PFAF]. Especially in times of drought, many Acacia species can concentrate high levels of the toxin Hydrogen cyanide in their foliage, making them dangerous for herbivores to eat.

Cultivation Details

HabitShrub
Growth—

Acacia hemiteles is native to the Mediterranean and semi-arid climate of southwestern Australia. It is a somewhat frost-tolerant species, surviving several frosts each year in its native environment[2]. Requires a sunny position. Succeeds in a wide range of soils, from sands to clays and from moderately alkaline to moderately acid, so long as they are well-drained[2]. Established plants are very drought tolerant. The pods are usually produced in large quantities and are held terminally, thus accessible for collection. They are easily harvested in large numbers either by hand or (more efficiently) by manually shaking or gently beating the plants and collecting them on a ground sheet. The medium-sized to large seeds (30 000-40 000 viable seeds per kg) are easily removed from the pod[3]. Plants of this species flower prolifically from an early age; the heads are bright golden and lightly perfumed. For these reasons it could have horticultural potential or be useful as amenity planting in semi-arid areas[3]. This species together with four close relatives; Acacia anthochaera, Acacia camptoclada, Acacia dorsenna and Acacia prainii, comprise the informal "Acacia prainii group"[3]. This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria; these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[4].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a sunny position in a warm greenhouse[5].The dried seed of most, if not all, members of this genus has a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing to speed up germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing. Sow the seed in Spring in a greenhouse. As soon as the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots and grow them on in a sunny position in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts, and consider giving them some protection from the cold for their first winter outdoors. Acacia seeds that have matured fully on the bush and have been properly dried have a hard seed coat and can be stored in closed containers without deterioration for 5 - 10 years or more in dry conditions at ambient temperatures. It is best to remove the aril, which attracts weevils and can lead to moulds forming. The arils are easilyremoved by placing the seeds in water and rubbing them between the hands, then drying the seeds and winnowing them[6]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Acacia+hemiteles>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]Acacia in Australia: Ethnobotany and Potential Food Crop — Lister P.R.; Holford P.; Haigh T.; Morrison D.A. · ASHS Press, Alexandria, VA. · 1996 · https://hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1996/v3-toc.html · ISBN 0-9615027-3-8 ↩︎
  2. [2]Domestication of wattles with edible seeds for the wheatbelt of Western Australia — McDonald M.W.; Maslin B.R.; Thomson L.A.J. · 2002 ↩︎
  3. [3]Wattles of the Kalannie region: their identification, characteristics and utilisation — Maslin B.R. · 1998 · http://worldwidewattle.com/ ↩︎Produced on a CDROM, a database of Acacias growing in a region of Western Australia. Fact sheets for individual species can be downloaded from the Internet.
  4. [4]Nodulation Plants in GRIN Taxonomy — United States Department of Agriculture · http://www.ars-grin.gov/~sbmljw/cgi-bin/taxnodul.pl?language=en ↩︎An online database listing plants that have either positive or negative reports on root and stem nodulation with nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
  5. [5]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  6. [6]Potential of Australian Acacias in combating hunger in semi-arid lands — Rinaudo A.; Patel P.; Thomson L.A.J. · 2002 ↩︎
  7. [7]Plants for Shade. — Knight. F. P. · Royal Horticultural Society. · 1980 · ISBN 0-900629-78-9 ↩︎A small but informative booklet listing plants that can be grown in shady positions with a few cultivation details. ,
  8. [8]Flora of Australia — http://www.anbg.gov.au/abrs/abif/flora/ ↩︎The full information from the Flora of Australia - on-line. An excellent resource.
  9. [9]The Useful Native Plants of Australia. — Maiden J.H. · Turner & Co.; London. · 1889 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Terse details of the uses of many Australian plants and other species naturalised, or at least growing, in Australia. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  10. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎