Acacia Pendula is the Plant of the Month!

Acacia pendula, Weeping myall, medium- to large-sized tree

The graceful medium-sized evergreen grows twenty feet tall and fifteen feet wide with pendulous, weeping branches and multiple trunks. It has striking shiny, silvery, grayish-blue foliage that is long and thin, along with inconspicuous, pale yellow, ball-like flowers that appear in spring and winter. In Australia, Aboriginal hunters used its dark, grainy wood to make boomerangs. The heartwood of the tree produces a deep chocolate to dark toffee color that has been used by craftsmen to make furniture. The oil produced after cutting into the wood of the tree has a violet fragrance. This interesting specimen tree should be utilized in the landscape more often because it tolerates a wide range of soils from acidic to alkaline, is drought-tolerant, low-maintenance, and does not produce litter. Additionally, it is frost-tolerant to about fifteen degrees Fahrenheit and likes full sun and reflected heat. It should be irrigated deeply to encourage a good root system. This tree looks interesting in front of a tall, white wall or large structure with its shiny, blue foliage. It can also be used in groupings of two or three for an interesting look. Use it as a windbreak or in the background of ponds and water features, or as a focal point at the entrance to a building or home with it willowy appearance. The tree is a native to the river floodplains and dry outback areas of central and western Australia.