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blackbrush acacia

Scientific Name: Acacia rigidula

Family: Fabaceae

Category: Dicot

Growth: Tree, Shrub

Duration: Perennial

Other Names:

       

Vachellia rigidula (Blackbrush Acacia)

Vachellia rigidula, also known as Acacia rigidula, is commonly called Blackbrush Acacia or Chaparro Prieto. It's a shrub or small tree native to the southern United States and Mexico.

Considerations for Pets

  • This plant is a thorny shrub.

Considerations for Children

  • This plant is a thorny shrub, often forming dense thickets.

Taxonomy and Nomenclature

  • Scientific Name: Vachellia rigidula (Benth.) Seigler & Ebinger (accepted name)
  • Synonym: Acacia rigidula Benth.
  • Family: Fabaceae (Legume Family)
  • Kingdom: Plantae
  • Taxonomic Rank: Species

Distribution and Habitat

  • Native to the southern USA (specifically Texas and Arizona) and Mexico.
  • Found growing on rocky ridges in west and southwest Texas and northern Mexico.
  • Habitat includes scrub, shrub and brushlands, deserts, and grasslands & prairies.
  • It occurs on limestone hills at elevations between 1100 and 2000 feet.

Ecological Role

  • Invasion of rootplowed rangeland by Blackbrush Acacia is a problem in south Texas.

Morphological Characteristics and Growth Habits

  • It is a shrub or small tree.
  • Slow-growing but vigorous, blackbrush acacia suckers readily.
  • A medium-sized, deciduous, thorny shrub with multiple basal stems and whitish-to-dark-gray branches that frequently forms dense thickets.
  • Possesses white or fragrant white blooms.

Quirky Facts

  • The champion Blackbrush Acacia of Arizona made its debut on the list of American Forests Champion Trees in 1999, as it is the largest known tree of its species.