Family: Fabaceae (Pea Family)
Native range: New Guinea and northern Australia.
Description: A medium-sized tree to 40 feet with a dense crown of green, 8-inch long, sickle-shaped phyllodes, which resemble leaves. Bright yellow, buttonlike flower clusters appear in spring and sporadically through summer and fall. Fruit are somewhat earshaped, brown, contorted pods that persist for months.
Ecological threat: Earleaf acacia is exceptionally weedy along roadsides and other disturbed sites and readily invades pine rockland habitat and the margins of hardwood forests. The tree is fast-growing and fruits at an early age. Birds are the primary distributor of seeds. Once established in natural areas it can quickly form extensive colonies that outcompete native vegetation.
Distribution in Florida: Central and southern Florida.
Background: Introduced as a fast-growing tree for home and commercial landscapes. It is frequently used as a street and parking lot tree and will survive with little care or maintenance.
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