Herb: Kangaroo Thorn


Latin name: Acacia paradoxa


Synonyms: Acacia armata


Family: Leguminosae



Edible parts of Kangaroo Thorn:

Flowers - cooked. Rich in pollen, they are often used in fritters.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Evergreen
Shrub

Height:
5 m
(16 feet)

Flowering:
February
to May

Habitat of the herb:

Grows in dry sclerophyl forests.

Other uses of Kangaroo Thorn:

A yellow dye is obtained from the flowers. A green dye is obtained from the seed pods. Plants are heavily armed with thorns and make a good screen or hedge in warm temperate areas.

Propagation of the herb:

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a sunny position in a warm greenhouse. Stored seed should be scarified, pre-soaked for 12 hours in warm water and then sown in a warm greenhouse in March. The seed germinates in 3 - 4 weeks at 25°C. 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. Cuttings of half-ripe wood with a heel, July/August in individual pots in a frame. Overwinter in a greenhouse for the first winter and plant out in their permanent positions in late spring or early summer. Fair percentage.

Cultivation of Kangaroo Thorn:

Grows in dry sclerophyl forests.

Medicinal use of the herb:

None known

Known hazards of Acacia paradoxa:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.