Grey willow (Salix cinerea)

  • Drzewa Trees
  • Liściaste Deciduous
  • Liście pojedyńcze Single leaves
  • Ustawione na pędzie skrętolegle Alternating on the stem

Willow family (Salicaceae)

 

Broad, domed shrub of height 1.5-2(6) m. Bark with concavities. Stems felt-like due to hairs. Leaves arranged helically, 5-10 cm long, slightly crinkled and toothed, dirty green, not shiny, hairless upperside, while underside slightly hairy, grey-green and with very distinct network of veins. Stipules semi-cordate, toothed on margins. Dioecious, insect-pollinated, contributes to honey-making. Flower lacking perianth in sessile catkins. Capsule downy, 2-lobed. Seeds with white down. Flowers Mar.-Apr., before leaves develop.

Grows on moist and wet soils, in alder carr and willow scrub, as well as on abandoned meadows.

 

Descriptions devised by the team at the Independent Department of Forest Botany, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, i.e. L. Witkowska-Żuk, K. Marciszewska, W. Ciurzycki, A. Obidziński and P. Zaniewski.