Acacia baileyana (Cootamundra Wattle)

Fast-growing, Acacia baileyana (Cootamundra Wattle) is a large, graceful evergreen shrub or small tree adorned with a wide-spreading canopy and weeping branches clothed in feathery, finely cut, blue-gray leaves. The foliage remains appealing all year round. In late winter to early spring, clouds of bright golden-yellow, small, rounded flowers held in axillary racemes cover the branches and create a striking floral display. Relatively short-lived (30 years), Cootamundra Wattle (named after the small town of Cootamundra in New South Wales, Australia) makes a dramatic statement in the garden. A great plant for slopes and banks.

• Recipient of the prestigious Award of Garden Merit of the Royal Horticultural Society.
• Grows up to 20-30 ft. tall (6-9 m) and 20-40 ft. wide (6-12 m).
• Performs best in full sun in neutral to acid, moist, well-drained soils. Water sparingly in winter, keeping barely moist.
• A charming addition to Mediterranean gardens, wall-side borders.
• Prune immediately after flowering.
• Generally trouble-free, but keep an eye out for glasshouse red spider mite under glass.
• Propagate by seed at a minimum of 18°C in spring or root semi-hardwood cuttings in summer.
• Native to Australia (New South Wales).
• Find where this species is invasive in the United States.