Salix brachycarpa Nutt.
short-fruited willow (shortfruit willow; small-fruit willow)
Salicaceae (Willow family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
short-fruited willow (shortfruit willow; small-fruit willow)
Salicaceae (Willow family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
SUBTAXA PRESENT IN BC
Salix brachycarpa var. brachycarpa
Species Information
General:
Dioecious shrubs, 0.2-1.5 m tall, not colonial; branches decumbent or erect, flexible at base; twigs red-brown, densely hairy.
Leaves:
Alternate, simple; narrowly oblong to egg-shaped, 1-4 cm long, 0.5-1.6 cm wide, lower surface glaucous, long soft-hairy or long-silky, hairs white, upper surface shiny, long soft-hairy to nearly smooth, margins entire, bases rounded to pointed, tips pointed; leaf stalks without glandular dots at top; stipules rudimentary or leaflike.
Flowers:
Unisexual, lacking sepals and petals, borne in catkins which flower as leaves emerge, the catkins stout to globe-shaped, on leafy twigs; floral bracts pale, hairs wavy or straight; stamens 2; ovaries 1, 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 0-0.5 mm long.
Notes:
The taxon, sometimes treated as S. brachycarpa ssp. niphoclada, is treated as S. niphoclada in this work. See the latter species for further discussion. Putative hybrids with S. glauca var. villosa have been reported.
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 brachycarpa
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) |
1547 | 555 | 2460 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
9 | 0 | 70 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
50 | 0 | 360 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
4 | 1 | 8 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
207 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
ESSF | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
AT(17), BAFA(11), BWBS(7), ESSF(77), ICH(4), IDF(23), IMA(2), MS(25), SBPS(16), SBS(3), SWB(9) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Moist to mesic open forests, thickets, fens, seepage on limestone shores, and gravel floodplains in montane and subalpine zones; common throughout BC (except WC area) E of the Coast-Cascade Mountains; N to S YT and W NT, E to PQ and S to NM and CA.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Salix brachycarpa subsp. fullertonensis (C.K. Schneid.) A. Löve & D. Löve
Salix brachycarpa subsp. niphoclada (Rydb.) Argus
Salix brachycarpa var. fullertonensis (C.K. Schneid.) Argus
Salix brachycarpa var. mexiae C.R. Ball
Salix fullertonensis C.K. Schneid.
Salix glauca var. niphoclada (Rydb.) Wiggins
Salix muriei Hultén
Salix niphoclada var. fullertonensis (C.K. Schneid.) Raup
Salix niphoclada var. mexiae (C.R. Ball) Hultén
Salix niphoclada var. muriei (Hultén) Raup