The unforgettably named Cootamundra wattle, Acacia baileyana, is a superb winter plant that should be grown in many more mild gardens. It is reputedly hardy down to minus 10 degrees Celsius, but that would be as a fairly mature established plant and it could easily fall to hard frost if exposed to such weather in its first winter after planting.

It can be grown in a conservatory or greenhouse in colder areas but reacts badly to pot culture unless it is consistently watered and given regular liquid feeding. It is best planted close to a house wall facing south or west, where it will benefit from a little heat leaking from the house and some shelter. The Cootamundra wattle makes a fair-sized tree and is prone to being blown over, its leafy evergreen top giving the wind plenty to catch hold of, and should get a strong hardwood or treated stake at planting.

Coming into flower just before Christmas in reasonably mild areas within a few kilometres of the sea, this plant, also known as the ‘golden acacia’, is a stunning sight. When all around it is deep in drab winter dormancy, it is a beacon of bright golden yellow. Sprays of the flowers can be cut for indoor decoration, although they last only a day or two. They are so prolifically produced, festooning every branch, that a few can be afforded.

It is a rapid grower but does not flower until it is a few years old and about two metres tall. Older plants will flower in a conservatory, but need to be allowed to make some size just the same. Outdoors it can be pruned after flowering to keep it to a reasonable size. It refurnishes its branches very quickly and the pruning cuts will not be visible. At any time of year its lovely grey-green ferny foliage is very decorative. There is a form with purple-tipped young growth, Acacia baileyana ‘Purpurea’, which is even prettier out of flower.