Sweet acacia
A thorny shrub with fragrant yellow pompon flowers; floral nectar is scarce but pollen is plentiful. On Mediterranean coasts it blooms in late winter and spring.
- Nectar
- Low
- Pollen
- Good
- Flowering
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
- Height
- 2-6 m
- Life cycle
- Perennial
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Sweet acacia, native to tropical America, is a thorny shrub or small tree that has spread to warm regions around the world. Its golden-yellow, ball-shaped flower heads are strongly scented and are visited by bees mainly for pollen. Floral nectar is very scarce; extrafloral nectaries on the leaf stalks can give bees a small extra.
Flowering
In a Mediterranean climate it flowers from late winter until April; in the tropics flowering depends on rainfall and is irregular. In Turkey it is grown here and there as an ornamental on the southern coasts.
Honey and pollen
No monofloral honey from this species is known. The early pollen supports colonies that start brood rearing at the end of winter.
Note for the beekeeper
Its flowers are used in the perfume industry. It is considered invasive in Australia and on some ocean islands; no such problem has been reported in Turkey or Europe. It is drought-tolerant and also useful as a boundary hedge.