Acacia caven (Molina) Molina

Leguminosae

Synonyms

• Mimosa caven Molina (1782)
• Acacia farnesiana (Linnaeus)Willdenow var. cavenia (Hooker & Arnott) Kuntze (1898)
• Arechavaleta (1901)

Common names:

Aromo, Espinillo

Description:

Short tree or shrub, spiny, 2-5 m high. Deciduous, flowers in spring before shooting, fruits in late spring-early summer.

Distribution:

Temperate South America: Central-Eastern Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Central Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.

Centre of origin:

Argentinian Chaco.

Habitat:

One of few woody species that resists extreme desertification and aridity. Valuable for agroforestry systems in arid zones; in humid environments may invade arable land, difficult to eradicate.

Use:

Interesting for forage, but browsing limited due to spines.

Nodulation & N fixation:

Rhizobium nodules of caesalpinoideal type, scarcely specific; good N fixing with endo- and ecto-arbuscular micorrhiza.

Main References:

Cialdella, A.M. (1984) ; Dommergues I. et al (1998); Izaguirre & Beyhaut (in press)