Gundabluie

    (Acacia victoriae)

Also known as: Prickly Wattle, Bardi Bush

This short-lived acacia is very common around the highlands, particularly along the roadsides where earthworks spread the seed far and wide. While it is most common on the floodplains, it can also be found on sandstone hills.

As it's common name 'Bardi Bush' suggests, the Bardi grubs love this stuff to pieces! The larger specimens are always full of grubs which makes it very difficult to get useable sized pieces of timber but it's still worthwhile looking - and you can always get a feed of grubs while you're at it! 

Gundabluie flowers from around September through to November and can put on a real show in a good year. It grows to about 5 metres tall with a trunk up to 200mm diameter if it survives the grubs long enough.

The timber is not as 'tough' as most short-lived wattles so it machines well and sands much better than most. Gundabluie also has a faint, spicy smell once it warms up with machining that I find to be a bonus and it finishes easily with oils or wax.

Had to fill a couple of grub holes in this piece but it doesn't detract from the 'warmth' of the timber at all. The 'legs' and handle supports are of Gidgee

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