Bog Willow (Salix pedicellaris)

By Nancy Payne
November 1, 2009

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS PLANT?

Bog Willow (Salix pedicellaris)

A.K.A: Salix pedicellaris Pursh

RELATIVES: many members of the willow family Salicaceae, including black willow (Salix nigra), pussy willow (S. discolor), Bebb’s willow (S. bebbiana) and Arctic willow (S. arctophila)

ORIGIN: native

RANGE: all provinces, Yukon

HABITAT: rich, wet, bogs, swamps and fens

STEM: 50 to 150 centimetres tall

LEAVES: alternate, smooth, ovate to elliptic, two to five centimetres long, up to two cm wide, green on top, bluish-green underneath

FLOWERS: green to brown catkins, May to June; a shrub has all male or all female catkins

FRUIT: oval or pear-shaped capsule containing woolly seeds in its two halves

FEEDS: bees, butterflies

STATUS: not a species at risk

MISC.: Not to be confused with Alaska bog willow, S. fuscescens. Used by some Ojibwa to treat stomach ailments.