Rhyzobium

10,000 Courtii seeds on their way.

Dear community, In the interest of furthering the knowledge base relating to propagation and viability of various Acacia Sp. (particularly in the harsh climate of southern Tasmania) I have prepared a short video clip which I believe covers a lot of the information that was a little hard to find several years ago when I started out in this area. If anyone can offer any words of improvement or constructive criticism they will be gladly accepted. I hope you find it entertaining and useful. 300619_Growing_Acacias_in_Southern_Australia.mp4 300619_Growing_Acacias_in_Southern_Australia.mp4

Updated video. Courtii garden now producing 100,000+ seeds per year. PM me if you'd like some.

All gone

I have a few Acacia Courtii, Acacia Maideni, Acacia Floribunda, Acacia Obtusifolia, and Acacia Acuminata (broad and narrow) plants that I'm looking to give away to locals in Tasmania. Also, I will be trimming approx. 30 Courtii trees over the coming weeks so happy to give away some material for cutting propagation. PM me if interested.

50 or so remaining - have sent you a message.

There are a few of us down south that can assist. Make sure to reach out when you are ready.

Hi there, I'd be happy to trade some Courtii seed for some Loph seed if you are interested? Cheers, Rhyz

Can trade Acacia Courtii seeds or happy to pay $$$. Cheers

Hi, Glaukus, yes I agree that it would not be feasible to grow outside in Tas, however, I do have a large (25m long) conservatory in which tropical plants do well so suspect it would go well there too.

Thanks for the offer Groot but TAS quarantine rules prohibit plants in normal post or courier. One work around is to engage the services of a plant concierge who would treat and hold the plants at your end for a month or so them transfer to TAS. Big $$ for that service so I will wait a while and see if some seed turns up. Might be back in touch if nothing turns up. Cheers, Rhyz

Tripsis and Buttsack, if you are still on the hunt PM me your details and I'll send you some freshly harvested seed from the trees in my yard. The pods have just started to dry out.

Hi Humbolt, the Phlebs are definitely much harder to get started. Approx. 50% - success rate vs approx. 90% for most other species I've tried. I have generally followed the guidelines found here: https://herbalistics.com.au/acacia-phlebophylla-cultivation-from-seed/. I will have some fresh seed from my garden in 6-9 months so will continue the experimentation and report back.

Hi Humbolt, My research led me to believe that R. Japonica and Rhizobium sp. would be the most suitable (based on the info I could find on the web - links below). There are a multitude of other strains that may or may not be more beneficial but I've only tried these two so far. I must admit that my approach is more trial and error than rigorous science. In summary the path I followed was: https://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2002/09/19/674726.htm http://www.cpbr.gov.au/cpbr/projects/wattle-grow/index.html (Note that Wattle Grow was bought out by BASF who no longer produces the inoculant as it was not commercially viable. Also see that bradyrizobium was used in the trial) https://www.aciar.gov.au/file/68956/download?token=FE44X5Wy (See table 3 on page 32 for a list of bacteria strains) https://grdc.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0014/117221/rhizobial-inoculants-fact-sheet.pdf.pdf (See page 2 for inoculant groups that relate back to the eden seeds website) https://www.edenseeds.com.au/?name=Category-Info-General&category=Inoculant (Web based inoculant retailer) I understand that they are only beneficial for legumes so not suitable for natives in general. The rate of application I've used is approximately 2.5g (Type H ) + 2.5g (Type I) per 50 seedlings. Just mixed with tap water and applied as soon as the seeds are planted. I usually re-dose after about 8 weeks. Note that the Eden seeds do send a method to dose the seeds prior to germination but I've not tried this so far. I hope that is of some help.

Rupi, they cope with pruning very well. However, I'd try to gauge how supple the stem is. I.e. if it is still pretty supple (i.e. green and alive) and not dried out I'd leave it. In the photo above it looks salvageable - not sure if it has become worse since then?

Thanks for the feedback anrdos88 - I hold of with the rhizobium until they are potted then just mix the culture with water and apply. I'll add this process to the video over the coming weekend.

Rupi, you can get the bacteria here: https://www.edenseeds.com.au/Category-Info-General?category=Inoculant Use type I & H combined as they contain various Bradyrhizobium cultures that seem to work well with the Acacias that I've trialed You'll only need the 2x 5g (1 type I & 1 type H) sachets to treat half a dozen plants. They mention on the web site mixing it with milk powder however I've always just mixed it with water and applied with a watering can and had good results. A bit of reading material attached. Rhyz Rhizobial-inoculants-fact-sheet.pdf.pdf Nitrogen fixation in acacias.pdf

Rupi, this is a hard thing to determine - my first guess would be saturated ground. Courtiis hate prolonged saturation. I'd start with removing all of the mulch within a meter diameter to aid in drying out the ground. Perhaps also attempt to dig a bit of a drainage channel around it to divert as much surface water away as possible. I've certainly almost lost a few Courtii to wet ground in my earlier growing days. Keep and eye on it and if it still seems to be going down hill I'd suggest pruning back the dying areas, digging it up and bringing it inside for a few months. I'm often amazed an the turnaround that can occur when I have done this. Additionally, you could dose it with bradyrhizobium bacteria. See my video (posted yesterday) for some info on how to go about that if you're unsure. I'm on a clayey site and have found that a sandy loamy mound improved there survival and growth rates significantly. Good luck with it and would love hear how it goes. Cheers Rhys

Thanks Caster, A work in progress - so much more to add when time permits.

Hi Humbolt, Yes I lost a few small plants to frost early in my experimentation (UV causes me more problems though).I can say that the plants are far more vulnerable to frost when younger so I generally leave them inside until they are 500-900mm high. As far as rating which is most or least frost tolerant I'd lean towards them all being roughly the same except for the Obtusifolia which does seem to struggle a bit compared to the others.