Virginia Tech Dendrology

dwarf willow Salicaceae Salix herbacea L. symbol: SAHE2
Leaf: Alternate, simple, deciduous, nearly round with cordate bases and rounded tips, to 1.5 inches long vut typically much smaller, edges coarsely serrate; shiny green on top, lower surface glaucous; stipules mostly absent.
Flower: Species is dioecious; catkins stand upright from the branch tips; up to 1/2 inch long; appearing with the new leaves.
Fruit: Small, silky, wind-dispersed seeds from cone-shaped reddish capsules that are up to 3/8 inch long, develop and shed early in the growing season.
Twig: Yellow-brown to red-brown and glaucous; buds are reddish brown, globose, covered in one scale.
Bark: Yellow-brown to red-brown and glaucous, weathering to gray.
Form: A small creeping and twisted shrub, less than 5 inches tall and typically only 1 inch tall; mat forming, with all but a few leaves under ground.

Additional Range Information: Salix herbacea is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. Download the full-size PDF map.
External Links: USDA Plants Database
All material 2021 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information