Prairie Acacia

Acacia angustissima

White-ball Acacia, Fern Acacia

Anderson, Wynn, https://www.wildflower.org/gallery/result.php?id_image=68566

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Native Habitat: Grassland

Central Great Plains, Chihuahuan Deserts, Cross Timbers, East Central Texas Plains, Edwards Plateau, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, High Plains, Southern Texas Plains, Southwestern Tablelands, Texas Blackland Prairies, Western Gulf Coastal Plain

Maintenance

After the first hard frost, fern acacia dies to the ground. For use as a ground cover and in prairie restorations. Colonizes by rhizomes.

Comments

A thornless acacia with lacy foliage of compound leaves are it’s most attractive feature. Round masses of creamy white or salmon-colored flowers resembling shaving brushes. This native legume has seeds that are rich in protein; The species name, meaning “most narrow” in Latin, refers to the nature of the leaflets. Resembles a shrub but is not woody.

Growth Form

Shrub

Height

1 to

3 ft

Spread

1.5 to

2 ft

Soil Type(s)

Sand, Loam, Clay, Limestone, Alkaline, Calcareous, Well Drained, Dry

Light Requirement

Sun, Part Shade

Water Requirement

Low

Leaf Retention

Deciduous

Lifespan

Perennial

Bloom Color

White

Bloom Season

Summer

Seasonal Interest

Nectar

Wildlife Benefit

Butterflies

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References

1) Griffith, Bryce, Omernick & Rodgers (2007). Ecoregions of Texas.. 2) https://portal.torcherbaria.org/portal/taxa/index.php?taxon=Acaciella+angustissima&formsubmit=Search+Terms. 3) https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=ACAN11. 4) http://bonap.net/TDC/Image/Map?taxonType=Species&taxonId=10283&locationType=County&mapType=Normal. 5) Wasowski and Wasowski, Native Texas Plants Landscaping Region by Region, 1991, pg 96.

Native Plant Society of Texas