Salix humilis

Marshall

Arbust. Amer., 140. 1785.

Common names: Gray or small pussy or upland willow
WeedyIllustratedEndemic
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 7. Treatment on page 129. Mentioned on page 25, 97, 98, 121, 127, 131, 133, 135, 136, 139, 158.

Shrubs, 0.3–3 m, (forming clones by layering). Stems: branches dark redbrown, not or weakly glaucous, tomentose to glabrescent; branchlets redbrown, yellowbrown, or greenish brown, moderately to very densely villous, tomentose, or velvety-tomentose to glabrescent. Leaves: stipules absent or rudimentary on early ones, absent, rudimentary or foliaceous on late ones, apex acute; petiole convex to flat, or shallowly grooved adaxially, 0.5–7 (–12) mm, velvety, pilose, or villous adaxially; largest medial blade (sometimes hemiamphistomatous), narrowly oblong, narrowly elliptic, elliptic, oblanceolate, obovate, or broadly obovate, (13–) 20–90 (–135) × 3–23 (–35) mm, 2.3–9 times as long as wide, base cuneate or convex, margins revolute or flat, entire, crenate, or sinuate, (glands submarginal), apex acuminate or convex, abaxial surface glaucous, sparsely to densely tomentose or woolly, hairs erect or spreading, wavy, adaxial slightly or highly glossy, glabrous, pubescent, tomentose, or pilose; proximal blade margins entire or serrulate; juvenile blade green, densely tomentose to glabrescent abaxially, hairs white, sometimes also ferruginous. Catkins flowering before leaves emerge; staminate 6.5–34 × 5–19 mm, flowering branchlet 0–1 mm; pistillate (and staminate) moderately to very densely flowered, stout, subglobose, or globose, 9–47 (–55 in fruit) × 5.5–19 mm, flowering branchlet 0–4 mm; floral bract brown, black, or bicolor, 0.8–2 mm, apex rounded or acute, abaxially moderately densely hairy, hairs (white), straight or wavy. Staminate flowers: adaxial nectary oblong or square, 0.2–0.7 mm; filaments distinct, glabrous or hairy basally; anthers purple turning yellow, ellipsoid or cylindrical, 0.4–0.6 mm. Pistillate flowers: adaxial nectary square, 0.4–0.8 mm, shorter than stipe; stipe 1–2.5 mm; ovary obclavate or pyriform, moderately densely to sparsely short-silky-villous (hairs refractive), beak slightly bulged below styles, (valves recurving in fruit); ovules 6–12 per ovary; styles (sometimes slightly distinct distally), 0.2–0.4 mm; stigmas slenderly to broadly cylindrical, 0.2–0.56 mm. Capsules 5–12 mm.

Distribution

V7 136-distribution-map.gif

Man., N.B., N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que., Ala., Ark., Conn., D.C., Del., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Ky., La., Maine, Mass., Md., Mich., Minn., Miss., Mo., N.C., N.Dak., N.H., N.J., N.Y., Nebr., Ohio, Okla., Pa., R.I., S.C., S.Dak., Tenn., Tex., Va., W.Va., Wis.

Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Varieties humilis and tristis are almost sympatric. In Maine they occur in the same populations without evident intermediate forms, while in other places, e.g., Florida, Georgia, and Nebraska, they apparently intergrade. Usually, they are distinct in habit, leaf and catkin size, and, most conspicuously, the presence of foliaceous stipules in var. humilis and their absence in var. tristis.

Selected References

None.

Key

1 Stipules on late leaves foliaceous; largest medial blades (20-)50-90(-135) mm; petioles (1.5-)3-7(-12) mm; staminate catkins 14.5-34 mm; pistillate catkins longer than 20 mm; peeled wood smooth or striate, striae dense, to 20 mm. Salix humilis var. humilis
1 Stipules on late leaves absent or rudimentary; largest medial blades (13-)20-50(-70) mm; petioles 0.5-3(-6) mm; staminate catkins 6.5-13.5 mm; pistillate catkins shorter than 20 mm; peeled wood smooth or striate, striae sparse, to 2 mm Salix humilis var. tristis
... more about "Salix humilis"
21 +, 4 +, 1 +, 16 +  and 29 +
114 +, 95 +, 76 +, 57 +  and 38 +
glaucous +  and sparsely densely tomentose or woolly +
square +  and oblong +
0.04 cm0.4 mm <br />4.0e-4 m <br /> (0.08 cm0.8 mm <br />8.0e-4 m <br />) +
pilose;tomentose;pilose;tomentose;pubescent;glabrous +
purple turning yellow +
cylindrical +  and ellipsoid +
0.04 cm0.4 mm <br />4.0e-4 m <br /> (0.06 cm0.6 mm <br />6.0e-4 m <br />) +
acute +, rounded +, convex +  and acuminate +
George W. Argus +
Marshall +
convex +  and cuneate +
Salix sect. Vetrix +
tapering +
ferruginous +  and white +
serrulate +  and entire +
densely tomentose +  and glabrescent +
toothed +  and 2-fid +
persistent +
dark redbrown +
tomentose +  and glabrescent +
flowered +  and pistillate +
0.9 cm9 mm <br />0.009 m <br /> (4.7 cm47 mm <br />0.047 m <br />) +
velvety-tomentose +  and glabrescent +
globose +  and subglobose +
slender +  and stout +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
0.55 cm5.5 mm <br />0.0055 m <br /> (1.9 cm19 mm <br />0.019 m <br />) +
intermediate +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
pendulous +, spreading +  and erect +
Gray or small pussy or upland willow +
Man. +, N.B. +, N.S. +, Ont. +, P.E.I. +, Que. +, Ala. +, Ark. +, Conn. +, D.C. +, Del. +, Fla. +, Ga. +, Ill. +, Ind. +, Iowa +, Kans. +, Ky. +, La. +, Maine +, Mass. +, Md. +, Mich. +, Minn. +, Miss. +, Mo. +, N.C. +, N.Dak. +, N.H. +, N.J. +, N.Y. +, Nebr. +, Ohio +, Okla. +, Pa. +, R.I. +, S.C. +, S.Dak. +, Tenn. +, Tex. +, Va. +, W.Va. +  and Wis. +
hairy +  and glabrous +
bicolor +, black +  and brown +
0.08 cm0.8 mm <br />8.0e-4 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
pistillate +  and staminate +
bisexual +  and unisexual +
0.02 cm0.2 mm <br />2.0e-4 m <br /> (0.04 cm0.4 mm <br />4.0e-4 m <br />) +
ferruginous +  and white +
straight +
spreading +  and erect +
unbranched +  and spicate +
subterminal +  and axillary +
membranaceous +
hemiamphistomatous +, amphistomatous +  and hypostomatous +
oblong +  and narrowly broadly elliptic oblanceolate obovate or broadly obovate +
arranged +  and alternate +
9 cm90 mm <br />0.09 m <br /> (13.5 cm135 mm <br />0.135 m <br />) +
2.3 cm23 mm <br />0.023 m <br /> (3.5 cm35 mm <br />0.035 m <br />) +
marcescent +
deciduous +
2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br /> (9 cm90 mm <br />0.09 m <br />) +
obovate +, oblanceolate +, elliptic +  and oblong +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (2.3 cm23 mm <br />0.023 m <br />) +
sinuate +, crenate +, entire +, flat +  and revolute +
2-7[-10]-carpellate +
short-silky-villous +
pyriform +  and obclavate +
0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
glandular-dotted +
villous +, pilose +  and velvety +
convex;flat +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br />) +
Arbust. Amer., +
overlapping +
distinct +
Weedy +, Illustrated +  and Endemic +
decumbent;erect +
glabrescent;pubescent +
non-papillate +
cylindrical +
0.02 cm0.2 mm <br />2.0e-4 m <br /> (0.056 cm0.56 mm <br />5.6e-4 m <br />) +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (0.25 cm2.5 mm <br />0.0025 m <br />) +
caducous +  and persistent +
distinct +  and connate +
persistent +  and deciduous +
Salix humilis +
Salix sect. Cinerella +
species +
pointed +  and rounded +
sympodial +, branching +  and heterophyllous +