Plant in full coastal sun to dappled or full shade in most any soil and irrigate occasionally to regularly. Cold hardy to below 20F. This is an unusual Acacia in that it is quite tolerant of shade and heavier soils, but it also is less drought tolerant than most and will require supplemental irrigation in most California gardens.

The name Acacia comes either from the Greek word 'akazo' meaning "to sharpen" or from the Egyptian word 'akakia', a name given to the Egyptian Thorn, Acacia arabica. The specific epithet "linifolia" is in reference to the narrow phyllodes resemblance to that of the Flax plant in the genus Linum. This plant was originally introduced into California as Acacia linearis by William Walker at his Golden Gate Nursery in San Francisco in 1858 and later as Acacia linifolia in 1860. It was brought into the Santa Barbara region by Dr. Francisco Franceschi, also using the name Acacia linearis. We began growing it in 2008 and stopped due to a lack of sales in 2011 - another nice plant that too few people seemed to appreciate. 

This information about Acacia linifolia displayed on this web page is based on research we have conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations we have made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how our crops have performed in containers in the nursery field. Where appropriate, we will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share cultural information that would aid others in growing this plant.