salix

( SAY - licks )

At-A-Glance Information

Commonly called Willow, Sallow, or Osier, this genus includes deciduous trees and shrubs that require full sun and regular to ample water. They are fast growing and weak-wooded, as well as being relatively short-lived. They are great near bodies of water, but are also wonderful shade trees for lawns and patios. All of these plants have invasive roots that steal moisture from other plants, it is not recommended that they have under-plantings.

salix Species and Varietals

The genus Salix includes 350 species and is a member of the plant family Salicaceae. The best growing zones for Salix vary depending on the species. For more information, see the following descriptions. To find your zone, click here: Zone Map.

Salix aegyptica (Persian Willow)
This species forms a large shrub or small tree with red branches. These plants are native to the Caucasus and western areas of Asia, and is cultivated in many countries as a shrub due to its decorative flowers. Persian Willow reaches between 8 and 33 feet tall when mature, and produces green foliage and many catkins that flower from March to April.
Salix alba (White Willow)
This tree does well in zones A2, A3, 1-11 and 14-24 and is native to Europe and northern and central Asia. It has an upright habit to 75-100 feet tall and 50-100 feet wide, with yellow-brown bark and bright green foliage with silvery undersides. Leaves may turn yellow in fall. Varieties are grown for their colorful twigs; see the listings below.
Salix alba 'Tristis' (Salix babylonica aurea, Salix 'Niobe')
(Golden Weeping Willow)
This variety reaches 50-70 feet tall and just as wide or a little wider, and has bright yellow young stems. A great weeping selection.
Salix alba vitellina
This upright grower has yellow stems in wintertime, and is commonly cut back yearly before spring growth to a foot tall to encourage a better color display. Will reach around 8 feet tall in one season. Variety 'Britzensis' has orange-red stems.

Salix amygdaloides (Almond Leaf Willow, Peach Leaf Willow)
This species of Willow is native to central areas of North America, and forms a small to medium-sized deciduous tree reaching between 13 and 66 feet tall when mature. Flowers are yellow catkins, produced in springtime alongside green foliage that resembles that of a Peach or Almond tree. These trees grow very quickly but are short-lived, and can be found in prairies and along streambeds.

Sailx arctica (Arctic Willow)
This small, creeping Willow species is adapted to survive arctic conditions, and is native to the northern United States, Canada, Greenland and Alaska. It is the northernmost woody plant in the world. These plants reach between 6 and 20 inches tall at maturity, and have either red or white flowers (depending on the sex). These are long-lived plants.

​Salix babylonica (Weeping Willow, Babylon Willow)
This tree is best in zones 3-24, H1 and H2 and is native to China. It reaches 30-50 feet tall and just as wide (or a little wider). Branchlets are green or brown, and the tree has a pronounced weeping habit. Varieties include 'Crispa' (also called 'Annularis', Ringleaf Willow, or Corkscrew Willow; with curled leaves and a narrower habit than the species).

Salix bebbiana (Beaked Willow, Long-Beaked Willow, Gray Willow, Bebb's Willow, Red Willow)
This species of Willow forms a fast-growing multiple stemmed shrub or small tree capable of creating dense thickets. They reach between 5 and 20 feet tall when mature, and trees often have short and twisted trunks and an open, rounded crown. Wood from these plants is harvested due to its color and is commonly carved or woven. 
FACTOID ABOUT DIAMOND WILLOW AND THE FUNGUS

​Salix caprea (French Pussy Willow, Pink Pussy Willow, Great Sallow, Goat Willow)
This species can be grown as a shrub or tree and is best in zones 2-11 and 14-24. These plants are native from northeastern Asia through to Europe, and have dark green leaves with gray, hairy undersides. Male trees produce pink-gray catkins before leafout. Can be cut to the ground every few years to keep a shrubby size. Variety 'Kilmarnock' (also known as 'Pendula') has a sprawling habit and is usually grafted onto a more upright variety, forming a 6-8 foot tall and 6 foot wide tree.

Salix cinerea (Common Sallow, Grey Sallow, Grey Willow, Grey-Leaved Sallow, Large Grey Willow, Pussy Willow, Rusty Sallow)
This species is native to Europe and western Asia, and provides a lot of great nectar for local pollinators. The species forms a deciduous shrub or small tree growing 13-50 feet tall. Leaves are green above and hairy below. These plants are commonly seen growing in wetlands. It is considered an invasive plant in New Zealand and south-eastern Australia. 

Salix discolor (American Pussy Willow, Glaucous Willow)
This Willow is native to North America and forms a deciduous shrub or small tree to 20 feet tall. Leaves are oval, green above and grey-white underneath. These plants are grown for the cut flower trade.

Salix euxina (Eastern Crack-Willow)
This species is native to Turkey through the Caucasus, and was first described in 2009. These trees can reach between 50 and 65 feet tall when mature, and have pale green leaves. Variety 'Bullata' is a popular garden ornamental tree in Europe, and has a short trunk and very dense globe-shaped crown. ​Highly susceptible to ice, wind, and snow damage.

Salix exigua (Sandbar Willow, Narrowleaf Willow, Coyote Willow)
This species is native to North America and is considered endangered in some areas of its range. These deciduous shrubs can reach 13-23 feet tall when mature, and spread by basal shoots to form dense colonies. Leaves are grey-green. Flowers are magnets for pollinators like bees and butterflies, and these trees are cultivated as ornamentals.

Salix x fragilis (Crack Willow, Brittle Willow)
This hybrid species is native to Europe and western Asia, and is a cross between Salix euxina (Eastern Crack Willow) and Salix alba (White Willow). These are medium-sized to large deciduous trees that rapidly grow to reach 33-66 feet tall. They are often multi-trunked and irregular, with a leaning crown. Leaves are bright green and finely serrated. Highly susceptible to ice, wind, and snow damage.

Salix glauca (Gray Willow, Grayleaf Willow, White Willow, Glaucous Willow)
This species is commonly seen growing as a shrub up to 4 feet tall, but can also forma 20-foot tall tree. They are native to Alaska, Canada, United States, Greenland, northwestern Europe and Siberia. Bark is grey and furrowed with age. 

Salix 'Golden Curls' ('Erythroflexuosa')
Grown as either a shrub or a tree, this species does well in zones 3-11 and 14-24. It is a cross between Salix alba 'Tristis' and Salix matsudana 'Tortuosa', and reaches 30 feet tall and wide, with twisting branches and glossy, curling green leaves. Fall foliage is yellow. New growth has bright yellow bark. Cut back hard in wintertime after it has established itself to keep new colorful growth coming in. Variety 'Scarlet Curls' has scarlet new bark.

Salix gooddingii (Goodding's Black Willow. Goodding's Willow)
Native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, this species grows in moist and wet habitats and is a common riparian species. These trees reach 10 to 100 feet tall and have thick, furrowed bark and many thin branches. Leaves are green.

​Salix gracilistyla (Rose-Gold Pussy Willow)
This species takes the form of a shrub, and reaches 6-10 feet tall and 12 feet wide. These shrubs grow best in zones 3-11 and 14-24, and have grey-green leaves with bluish undersides. Male shrubs produce catkins with rose-gold anthers on branches; these look wonderful in cut flower arrangements. Every 3-4 years cut the plant back to stubs to encourage new vigorous growth. Variety 'Melanostachys' has black catkins with red anthers.

Salix herbacea (Dwarf Willow, Least Willow, Snowbed Willow)
This species is adapted to survive harsh arctic and sub-arctic environments and is native to areas around the north Atlantic Ocean. It is one of the smallest woody plants in the world, and typically only reaches 2.5 inches tall at maturity. They form open mats of green foliage and red or yellow catkins (depending on the sex). 

Salix humboldtiana (Humboldt's Willow)
This species is native to North and South America, and can be evergreen or deciduous, depending on the climate. It can reach up to 82 feet tall when mature. 

​Salix integra 'Hakuro Nishiki' (Dappled Willow)
Best in zones 3-9 and 14-17, this shrub is native to Korea and Japan. It commonly reaches 4-6 feet tall with a weeping habit, and stems and leaf buds are salmon-colored. Leaves are light green, marked with white and pink. Color is best when the shrub is given partial shade.

Salix laevigata (Red Willow, Polished Willow)
These small trees reach 45 feet tall and commonly grow along riverbanks and in other areas with high soil moisture like wetlands. Bark is ridged and greyish, sometimes turning red with age. Twigs are reddish. These Willows are native to California's coastline and foothills, northern Mexico, 

Salix lasiolepis (Arroyo Willow)
This species of Willow is native to western North America, and forms a deciduous large shrub or small multi-trunked tree to 33 feet tall. Leaves are green with whitish, hairy undersides. Flowers bloom from February through May. This was an important harvested species for indigenous populations of California.
Salix matsudana (Salix babylonica pekinensis) (Hankow Willow)
This species takes the form of a tree, and has an upright, pyramid-shape. These trees do best in zones 3-11 and 14-24, and have bright green, narrow leaves. This species can get by on less water than others and can tolerate more salt in the soil. They are popularly grown in high desert areas. Varieties are listed below.
'Navajo' (Globe Navajo Willow)
This tree has a rounded head and reaches 40 feet tall and 50 feet wide, with a spreading habit.
'Snake'
Contorted form to 40 feet tall and 30 feet wide; branches weep at the ends and bark is light, warm brown.
'Tortuosa' (Dragon-Claw Willow, Corkscrew Willow)
30 feet tall and 20 feet wide, with twisting, upright branches. Great winter silhouette; branches are used in cut flower arrangements. Best in zones 3-11 and 14-24.​
'Umbraculifera' (Globe Willow)
This variety reaches 35 feet tall and just as wide, with an umbrella-shaped head and upright branches with drooping branchlets.

Salix nakamurana yezo-alpina (Creeping Alpine Willow)
This interesting species is best in zones 2-6 nd 15-17 and takes the form of a low-spreading plant that reaches just 2 feet tall and over 10 feet wide. L eaves are bright green and heart-shaped, and have silky white hairs when new. Fall foliage is yellow-gold. Male plants have creamy white catkins. Great as a rock garden groundcover. Needs well-draining soil with a lower nitrogen content (add peat and fine gravel amendments to soil before planting).

Salix nigra (Black Willow)
This species of Willow is native to North America, and forms a medium-sized deciduous tree to between 35 and 100 feet tall. Bark is dark brown to blackish, and is fissured in older trees, frequently forking near the base of the trunk. Leaves are dark green above, lighter green underneath. Leaves turn lemon yellow in fall. This is the only Willow species used for timber.

Salix x pendulina
Best in zones 2-11 and 14-24, this species is well-known because of its widely grown varietals. 'Blanda' (Wisconsin Weeping Willow) reaches 40-50 feet tall and spreads to 70 feet wide. 'Fan-Giant' is a great selection that is resistant to Twig Blight and Borers. 

Salix pierotii (Korean Willow) 
This species of Willow is native to northeast China, far eastern Russia, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan. They have twisted wood, and are used in their native range to demarcate property lines between farms. 

Salix purpurea (Purple Osier, Alaska Blue Willow, Purpleosier Willow)
This shrub is great in zones A2, A3, and 1-11. It is native to North Africa, central and eastern Asia, and Europe, and has purple branches. It tops out around 15 feet tall and just as wide, and leaves are dark green on top, bluish underneath. Can become overgrown, but a hard pruning can correct shape and encourage vigorous new growth. Varieties include 'Canyon Blue' (fast growth to 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide with blue-grey leaves), 'Gracilis' (also called 'Nana' or Dwarf Purple Osier, with slim branches; usually kept as a low hedge about 1-3 feet tall and wide).

Salix scouleriana (Fire Willow, Nuttall Willow, Mountain Willow, Black Willow, Scouler's Willow)
​These deciduous shrubs or small trees reach up to 23-66 feet tall depending on climate conditions. Bark is gray to dark brown and fissured, and twigs are whitish-green. Leaves are dark green above and white or grayish and hairy below. Flowers are produced from mid to late spring. Wood is used for firewood and carving.

Salix triandra (Almond Willow, Almond-Leaved Willow, Black Maul Willow)
This species of Willow is native to Europe and western and central areas of Asia. It forms a deciduous small tree or shrub to 33 feet tall. Bark is grey-brown and becomes scaly with age. Large scales are shed, leaving behind orange-brown patches. Foliage is dull to dark green. This species forms natural hybrids with Salix viminalis. Cultivars include 'Black Maul', 'Grizette', 'Mottled Spaniards', 'Sarda' and 'Yellow Dutch'.

Salix viminalis (Basket Willow, Common Osier, Osier)
This species is native to Europe, Western Asia, and the Himalayas. This multistemmed shrub reaches between 10 and 20 feet tall, and has straight branches with grey-green bark. Foliage is green with greyish undersides. Flowers are produced in early springtime. Its flexible twigs are used for basket-making. This species is a fantastic hyperaccumulator plant, and can be used to create living fences.

Caring for and pruning salix Trees

Propagation

Problems and Pests

Gallery

Camellias are great candidates to be grown as container plants on your patio.
A field of thea sinensis
Camellia hiemalis 'Shishi Gashira'

Videos

A video all about growing camellias successfully
Propagating camellias

Resources

Wikipedia: Willow
The New Sunset Western Garden Book: The Ultimate Gardening Guide (2012) - Pages 582 - 583, Salix
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