Salix commutata Bebb
under-green willow (undergreen willow)
Salicaceae (Willow family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
under-green willow (undergreen willow)
Salicaceae (Willow family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Dioecious shrubs, 0.2-3 m tall, not colonial; branches erect, flexible at base; twigs yellowish to red-brown, sparsely to densely hairy.
Leaves:
Alternate, simple, narrowly oblong to broadly elliptic, 1-10 cm long, 0.5-4.4 cm wide, lower surface not glaucous, smooth or short-woolly to long soft-hairy or nearly smooth, hairs white, upper surface dull, smooth or long soft-hairy to nearly smooth, margins entire to toothed, bases rounded to heart-shaped, tips pointed to tapered; leaf stalks without glandular dots at top; stipules leaflike.
Flowers:
Unisexual, lacking sepals and petals, borne in catkins which flower as leaves emerge, the catkins stout, on leafy twigs; floral bracts dark or pale, hairs straight or wavy; stamens 2; ovaries 1, smooth or rarely hairy; styles 0.5-1.5 mm long.
Fruits:
Capsules which split open to release the seeds, each of which is surrounded by a tuft of hairs; stalks 0.3-2 mm long.
Notes:
This species has been reported to hybridize with S. barclayi.
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
USDA Species Characteristics
Blooming Period:
Late Spring
Fruit/Seed characteristics:
Colour: Brown
Present from Spring to Summer
Source: The USDA
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Salix commutata
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
| Site Information |
Value / Class |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
1519 | 120 | 2435 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
10 | 0 | 78 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
234 | 0 | 360 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
5 | 1 | 8 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
218 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
ESSF | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
AT(6), BAFA(6), BWBS(5), CWH(1), ESSF(131), ICH(7), IDF(3), IMA(1), MH(22), MS(9), SBS(7), SWB(8) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Wet to moist thickets, lakeshores, gravelly streambanks, floodplains, river terraces, open forests and raw morainal deposits in the subalpine to alpine zones; frequent throughout BC; N to AK and W NT, E to AB, S to MT, ID and OR.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Salix barclayi var. commutata (Bebb) L. Kelso
Salix commutata var. denudata Bebb
Salix commutata var. mixta Piper
Salix commutata var. puberula Bebb
Salix commutata var. sericea Bebb