VAL-06: Willow (Salix spp.)

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Willow (Salix spp.)

Tree Art Spring

Bud Flower

Seed Leaf

Common Name: Willow
Scientific Name: Salix spp.
Other Names:

Leaf: Simple, alternate, deciduous; leaves much longer than is wide, slender, tapering at both ends, short-talked; among the first trees to leaf out in spring and the last to shed their laves in autumn.
Flower: Borne in many-flowered catkins; pollen catkins (flower) and seed catkins on separate trees; flowers (numerous on pollen catkin) tiny, greenish yellow, no petals or sepals, usually with 2 stamens; insect or wind-pollinated; appear in spring before the leaves unfold.
Fruit: Numerous tiny fruit capsules on seed catkin; fruit capsules green, ovoid, pointed, splits into halves to release the seeds; seeds 1-2mm long, covered by long white silky hairs, dispersed by wind or water.
Twig: Twigs long and slender; twigs and branches frequently break off; buds with a single bud scale, pointed, pressed against the twig; color varies with species but frequently yellowish brown; two types of bud: flower bud (large) and leaf bud (small).
Bark: Varies between species; young bark usually smooth with lenticels; mature bark scaly or furrowd.
Wood: Light, texture uniform, straight-grained, soft, not durable, but tough and shock-resistant, odorless, and pale; annual rings often not well defined.

Facts About This Tree:
1. There are about 400 species of willow worldwide, about 100 species in North America, and about 70 species of willow native to Canada. Almost all willow species are intercrossable and there’s great variation within species which makes it very difficult to identify them down to species level.
2. The scientific name Salix means near (sal) water (lis).
3. Willows are useful for reclamation work, erosion control, and the stabilization of river banks because they thrive under moist conditions and quickly produce an extensive root system.
4. All species of willows (Salix) contain both tannin and salicin which can be processed into salicylic acid (a common corn-remover) and acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) commonly known as aspirin.
5. White-tailed deer browse willows year round and beavers stock their underwater food caches with willow branches each fall before the ice sets in. Rabbits and hares bound on the snow from willow to willow, nipping off the twigs. In spring, porcupines consume the catkins, a break from their winter diet of tree bark.

Lat, Long: 43.74722, -79.82317
Diameter (DBH): 68.1 cm
Last Year Modified: 2015
Carbon Stored in this Tree: 1171.78 kg of C
Equivalent CO2: 4296.11 kg of C

Find more trees in Valleywood.

Reference
1. Blouin, Glen. 2001. An Eclectic Guide to Trees East of the Rockies. Erin, ON. Boston Mills Press
2. Farrar, J. L. 2007. Trees in Canada. ON. Canadian Forest Service
3. Photo Credit: Daniel J. Kim; Black Willow – Flowers and leaves by Dendroica Cerulea via Flickr – https://flic.kr/p/nL4gMg; Pussy Willow #104 Soft by Trevor King via Flickr – https://flic.kr/p/mAS1SS; Pussy willows by A. Drauglis via Flickr – https://flic.kr/p/4uBoL3; Salix fragilis by Matt Lavin via Flickr – https://flic.kr/p/8EerS2; Weeping Willow At Sunset by Art G. via Flickr – https://flic.kr/p/3nuTk2

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