Plant Family: Salicaceae
Growth Form: Shrubs to medium-sized trees.
Leaves / Buds: Alternate, simple, often finely toothed, usually linear or narrowly elliptic, a few species have broader leaves. A single, hood-like scale covers each bud, a character common to all willows.
Bark: Light gray or brown, smooth and ridged on younger stems, becoming fissured on older trunks.
Flowers: Male and female flowers are on separate plants; flowers appear in early spring on upright catkins either before or with the expanding leaves; pollination is by insects.
Fruits: Small two-part capsules that open to release the light, fluffy, airborne seeds in early summer.
Habitat: Floodplains, streambanks, shores, low woods, sometimes on drier upland sites.
Range: Throughout New England.
Key Feature: The single bud scale will separate the willows from other woody plants.
Comments: Willows are a large plant group of the temperate and arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere. New England has approximately 30 species. The growth form of willows is usually shrubby, with a few attaining tree stature; most are found in, or bordering, wetland habitats. Willows are ecologically important in stabilizing streambanks, as food for butterfly larvae, and as a nectar and pollen source for early spring insects. Willows provide nesting sites for birds, and cover and browse for a wide variety of mammals. Extracts of willow bark contain salicin, well known for its anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving properties.
