Husbandry Manual Goliath Stick Insect - Nswfmpa.org

Husbandry Manual for Eurycnema goliath
Tara Bearman
Distribution and Source of Seeds/ Cutting
Distributed across the world where there are dry and warm regions. Out of the approximate 1300
species of acacia in the world there are approximately 950 species found in Australia. Seeds may be
sources from nurseries or wild trees except those found in the national parks of Australia. Cuttings
may also be obtained the same way.
Growing Season
Spring.
Propagation
Seed - the easiest is to pour boiling water over the seeds and allow them to stand overnight. The
next day any seeds which have swollen are ready for sowing and can be removed; the remainder of
the seeds can be treated with boiling water again and the process repeated for as long as necessary
(ASGAP, 2006b).
Softwood cutting - cuttings of about 75-100mm in length of mature, current season's growth with the
foliage removed from the lower two-thirds of the stem. "Wounding" the lower stem by removing a
sliver of bark and treating the lower stem with a "root promoting" hormone both seem to improve
the success rate (ASGAP, 2006b).
Growing Care Notes
It is recommended to plant saplings in the ground during autumn, at this time the environmental
conditions are optimal for ensuring your saplings get the best chance after being replanted.
Acacia seed usually germinates well by conventional sowing methods in seed raising mixes. Pregermination,
by sowing into a closed container containing moist vermiculite or a similar material, is
also a useful method. Using this method, germination usually occurs in 1-2 weeks and when the root
has reached about a centimetre or so in length, the seedling can be placed into a small pot of seed
raising mix.
Plant Pests and Diseases
Many Australian insects will eat acacia species; however they should not cause sufficient damage to
the trees to affect the quality of the food that you can collect for the goliath stick insects.
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