Found in the far west of the Central Highlands, Acacia julifera is quite
scarce in the area, possibly because it only seems to grow at the foot of
sandstone escarpments. The largest examples I have seen had trunks to about
180mm diameter and a height of around 7 metres.
The species starts flowering around August/September.
When
freshly cut, the timber is really colourful with yellows and greens all the
way through though it does darken while drying, except the sapwood which
stays a lovely bright yellow.
It
tends to crack quite a bit while drying and needs to be halved and the ends
sealed ASAP to avoid losing the lot.
The timber is moderately heavy, close grained and has the same aroma as
Myall, Yarran and the likes, which helps compensate for its hardness. Acacia
julifera is hard to machine, abrasive on tools, is sandable (just!) and
takes a finish really nicely.
