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Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
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| THE WILLOW FAMILY | |||||||||
| The willows are widespread, especially in north temperate and subarctic regions of the world. The bark on the trunks may be smooth or rough and can vary in colour from white to brownish to gray. The leaves are simple and alternate. The male and female flowers are on separate plants. The flowers are in spike-like clusters called catkins. The flowers are very small and do not have sepals or petals. The male flowers consist of nectaries and stamens with a single bract below. The female flowers consist of nectaries, and a superior ovary with a single bract below. The fruit is a capsule that contains many small seeds, each of which has a tuft of long, white silky hairs. | |||||||||
| NETLEAF WILLOW | |||||||||
| LATIN NAME: Salix reticulata ssp. reticulata | |||||||||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | |||||||||
| Netleaf willow is a small, creeping shrub that is less than 10 cm tall. The stems are mostly buried under the soil. The above ground branches are light brown. The leaves are round and leathery. The upper surface is dark green, wrinkled and with sunken veins. The lower surface has a waxy bloom, silky hairs and a strong net pattern of veins. The capsules are 4 to 5 mm long and are silky-hairy. The bracts are yellowish to dark red and are usually silky-hairy. | |||||||||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | |||||||||
| In Saskatchewan, netleaf willow grows in black spruce muskegs, birch scrubland, and stream-valley boulder-fields. | |||||||||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | |||||||||
| This plant is found in northeastern Saskatchewan in the Selwyn Lake Upland ecoregion. | |||||||||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | |||||||||
| Netleaf willow is threatened because it is rare and highly regionally restricted in the province. This species is usually locally numerous within limited areas. No threats are known or anticipated for this species at the present time. | |||||||||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY NETLEAF WILLOW | |||||||||
| * Are the bracts yellowish to dark red? * Is the upper surface of the leaf dark green, wrinkled, and with sunken veins? * Does the lower surface of the leaf have a net pattern of veins and a waxy bloom? * Did you find it in northeastern Saskatchewan? | |||||||||
| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found netleaf willow! | |||||||||
