Salix serissima (L.H. Bailey) Fernald
autumn willow
Salicaceae (Willow family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
autumn willow
Salicaceae (Willow family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Dioecious shrubs, 1-5 m tall, not colonial; branches erect, flexible at base; twigs yellow- to red-brown, smooth.
Leaves:
Alternate, simple, leathery, narrowly oblong to elliptic, lance-, or narrowly egg-shaped, 4-9.5 cm long, 1-3 cm wide, lower surface glaucous or not, smooth, upper surface highly glossy, smooth, margins toothed, bases pointed to rounded, tips pointed; leaf stalks with glandular dots at top; stipules absent or rudimentary.
Flowers:
Unisexual, lacking sepals and petals, borne in catkins which flower as leaves emerge or after them, the catkins stout, on leafy twigs; floral bracts pale, hairs straight, female bracts deciduous; stamens 3-9; ovaries 1, smooth; styles 0.3-1 mm long.
Fruits:
Capsules which split open to release the seeds, each of which is surrounded by a tuft of hairs; stalks 1.2-2.4 mm long.
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
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Salix serissima
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) |
952 | 480 | 1395 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
8 | 0 | 47 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
187 | 145 | 230 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
5 | 2 | 7 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
6 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
BWBS | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
BWBS(3), ESSF(2), MS(1) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Wet thickets, meadows and fens in the montane zone; rare in NE BC; N to S NT, E to NF and S to MA, NJ, PA, OH, IN, IL, MN, SD and CO.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Salix arguta var. alpigena Anderss.
Salix arguta var. pallescens Anderss.
Salix lucida var. serissima Bailey