Scientific Name:
Salix discolor
Pronunciation:
SAY-licks DISS-kull-ur
Common Name:
American pussy willow, native willow
Family Name:
Salicaceae
Plant Type:
Shrub - deciduous, Tree - deciduous
Key ID Features:
Shrub 2-6m tall; twigs red-brown to yellowish, pubescent before quickly becoming glabrous; leaves narrowly elliptic to ovate to broadly oblanceolate, 3-10(-14)cm long, 1-3.5cm wide, sparsely long soft-hairy and then usually glabrous on both sides when mature, margins nearly entire to irregularly crenate or toothed, often undulate, bases rounded to wedge-shaped, tips pointed (acute); stipules leaf-like or rudimentary; male catkins grey becoming yellow and anthers emerge before the leaves and elongate up to 4cm long; female catkins elongate 7-10(-12)cm long as fruit develop. E-Flora BC
Habit:
Dense, Spreading, Upright
Form:
Round
Texture:
Medium
Mature Height:
5 - 7m
Mature Spread:
5 - 7m
Growth Rate:
Fast
Origin:
North America
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 6: (-23 to -18 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Bog
Water Use:
High, Wetlands
Landscape Uses:
Cut flower or foliage, Erosion control, Reclamation, Spring interest, Waterside planting, Wetland - bogs, Woodland margin
Additional Info:
Google. There are over 50 species of willow in BC and most have highly variable leaf morphology (require female catkins and fruit to confirm ID).
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple
Arrangement:
Alternate
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible
Surfaces:
Glabrous, Tomentose
Colour in Fall:
Green-yellow
Shapes:
Elliptic, Oblanceolate, Oblong, Obovate, Ovate
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Acute, Cuneate
Margins:
Crenate, Entire, Serrate, Undulate (wavy)
Inflorescence Type:
Catkin (ament), Floriferous
Flower Morphology:
Dioecious plant
Number Of Petals:
0
Colour (petals):
Green-yellow
Flower Scent:
None
Flower Time at Peak:
Mar, Apr
Fruit Type:
Capsule
Fruit Colour:
Brown
Fruiting Time:
Additional Info:
Not showy,
Bark Morphology:
Smooth, Multi-stem trunk
Bark or Stem Colour:
Leaf Bud Type:
Oblong, One-scaled, Ovoid
Leaf Scar Shape:
Crescent shaped
Organ Modifications:
Ectomycorrhizae, Stipule, leafy
Propagation:
Seed, Cuttings, Layering
Pest Susceptibility:
Aphids or adelgids, Beetles or weevils, Blight or needle cast, Dieback, Galls, Scale insects (Pest resistant, Disease resistant)
Course(s):
- Level 4 Apprenticeship
- CLT Training
Location(s):
- (BCE) Boulevard (Circular) Eastend : q. 4+ - confirm ID
- (BCW) Boulevard (Circular) Westend
- (FSC) Far South Campus : confirm ID
- (PDE) PonD East
- (WDH) Wark-Dumais House
- (WLG) WoodLand Garden