Salix reticulata

Salix reticulata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Salicaceae
Genus: Salix
Species: S. reticulata
Binomial name
Salix reticulata
L.
Synonyms

Salix nivalis Hook.

Salix reticulata, the net-leaved willow,[1] or snow willow,[2] is a dwarf willow, native to the colder parts of Europe, North America, and Northern Asia. It is found in the western United States (Salix reticulata subsp. nivalis), including the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains. In Europe it extends south through the Carpathian Mountains and Alps to the Pyrenees and the mountains of Macedonia.[3][4][5] It is common in Canada, Greenland and Finland, and present but rare in Scotland.[3][5]

The plant grows on wet, often slightly calcareous, rocks and ledges.[6]

Description

Salix reticulata is a dwarf, prostrate, deciduous shrub growing to 8 cm (3 in) tall by 30 cm (12 in) broad, forming loose open mats with extensive, much-branched, underground stems. The exposed stems can rise to 20 cm (7.9 in) high. The twigs are slightly hairy at first, then hairless and dark reddish-brown later.

Leaves are 1.2 cm to 5 cm long, 1 to 3.5 cm wide; densely hairy at first, becoming hairless at least on the upper side. The leaves have a conspicuous network of veins.

In Spring, slender yellow catkins with pink tips appear.[4][5][6]

Cultivation

Salix reticulata is cultivated as an ornamental plant, for use as groundcover. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "BSBI List 2007". Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-02-25. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  2. ↑ Sierra Nevada Wildflowers, Karen Wiese, 2nd Ed., 2013 p. 197
  3. 1 2 Species account from ARS Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) . accessed 5.14.2013
  4. 1 2 New Flora of the British Isles; Clive Stace; Third edition; 2011 printing.
  5. 1 2 3 Willows and Poplars of Great Britain and Ireland, BSBI Handbook No. 4; Meikle; 1984.
  6. 1 2 RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN 1405332964.
  7. ↑ "RHS Plant Selector - Salix reticulata". Retrieved 2 June 2013.

Further reading

Pink, A. (2004). Gardening for the Million. Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. 

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