Description
Salix – Willow – Sallow – Osier –
There are about 400 fast growing, short lived dioecious, deciduous trees, shrubs, and subshrubs, in this genus. They have habitats ranging from lowland meadows and riverbanks, to sand dunes and mountain screes worldwide, except Australia, with the majority found in the Northern Hemisphere. They have usually bright green, simple, lance shaped smooth or with toothed edges, usually held alternately. They bear very small flowers in usually erect catkins, before or with the foliage. Of diverse form, willows are grown for their habit (especially the weeping willows) catkins (of which the males are most striking) and foliage and sometimes colorful winter shoots. The bark once used as a source of Aspirin is furrowed and scaly and the branches are used for basket weaving. The larger willows are suitable only for a large garden, those with a weeping habit are especially effective by water. Grow smaller willows as specimen trees in a small garden, shrubby willows in a shrub border, and dwarf willows in a rock garden or trough.
Grow in areas with clearly defined seasons in any deep, moist but well drained soil in full sun or part shade, willows dislike shallow alkaline soil. The dwarf and alpine species need gritty, sharply drained soil.
Prone to crown gall, canker, dieback, root knot nematode, powdery mildew, lesion nematode, mushroom root rot, tar spot, rust, twig blight, heart rot, caterpillars, borers, aphids, scale insects, and gall mites.
S. gracilistyla – Rose-glow Pussy Willow – Redgold Pussy Willow – This vigorous, spreading, bushy deciduous shrub from japan, Korea, and China grows to 10′ feet tall and 12′ feet wide. From arching shoots, which are initially downy carry oblong, smooth to finely toothed, silky hairy, gray green leaves, to 4″ long, turning glossy, mid green, but remaining downy beneath. In early and mid spring before the leaves it bears silvery gray catkins, to 2″ long. Male catkins have red anthers that turn bright yellow.
Melanostachys’ – var. melanostachys – S. melanostachys – Black Pussy Willow – is upright in habit and male, and bears catkins with blackish brown bracts and red anthers
Zones 5-8
