Acacia verticillata (L'Her.) Willd.
Prickly Moses (Acacia verticillata) is a long-lived, evergreen shrub that is native to south-eastern Australia and Tasmania. It was introduced to New Zealand as a garden ornamental and was first recorded in the wild (naturalised) in 1948. The plant grows up to about 3 metres tall and has sharply pointed phyllodes arranged in dense whorls around the stems, giving the branches a prickly appearance. It flowers from August to October, producing pale yellow to cream, ball-shaped flower heads, which develop into narrow seed pods. It tolerates drought, frost and poor soils. It reproduces by seed. Seeds are dispersed by gravity, water, ants and human activities. Seeds can remain viable in the soil for many years and germinate readily following disturbance or fire.
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