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Willows
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Grey willow
Grey willow
A very common willow that looks much like goat willow and grows in similar places so it is quite hard to tell them apart.
What other names does it have?
Can also be known as
Grey sallow
Common sallow
Pussy willow
Generic name
Willow
Latin name
Salix cinerea subsp. oleifolia
Family name
Willow
Latin family name
Saliceceae
What type of tree is it?
Is it a broadleaf or conifer?
It is a broadleaf
Does it lose its leaves in autumn?
Yes, it is deciduous
Species description:
Average height
5-7m
Leaf
Description
The leaves are long and thin- at least twice as long as wide. They have a fine felt underneath with odd rusty hairs under the veins.
Shape
Oval
Colour
Green
Leaf bud
Buds are rounded and have minute hairs for the first year
Leaf stalk
Short stalk
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Flower, seed, and fruit
Type of flower
Catkin
Type of seed body
Catkin
Seeds dispersed by
Wind
Bark and twig
Bark description
Has shallow very dark grey ridges
Twig Description
Young twigs are minutely hairy. Twigs older than two years are ridged
What other trees are similar?
Can easily be confused with?
Goat willow or sallow- this has much larger oval to round leaves
Where is it usually found?
Is it native or non-native to the British Isles?
Native
Where is its natural range?
Britain and Ireland
Preferred soil type or environmental conditions?
Abundant in a range of conditions except on the lightest soils and dry sites
What is its British conservation status?
Common
Additional information
Tree lore and folklore
All willows were seen as trees of celebration in biblical times but this had changed over time and now the willows are associated with sadness and mourning. Classical poems often refer to willow in this way and it is repeated in art with Ophelia drowning herself near a willow. It is suggested that the bitter taste of willow gave it this assocation. Sprays of sallow have frequently been used as ‘palm’ to decorate churches and homes at Easter as little else was in leaf or flower. Tradition has it that if girls didn’t wear a sprig of pussy willow on Palm Sunday, then they would get their hair pulled
Illustrations supplied by
Collins
BritishTrees
©2012 The Woodland Trust