Shining Willow, Greenleaf willow
Salix lucida
Family: Salicaceae
What it is like
Salix lucida is a deciduous Shrub growing to 8 m (26ft 3in) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 2 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from April to May. The species is dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required). and is pollinated by Bees. The plant is not self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay and nutritionally poor soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid and neutral soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist or wet soil. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.
Height (m): 8
Where it is found
Wet soils, especially in and along swamps, also in marshes, peat bogs and on sand banks along creeks.
Eastern and Central N. America - Newfoundland to the eastern base of the Rockies.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 0
Medicine
Rating: 2
The bark is analgesic, antiasthmatic, astringent and haemostatic. It is used in the treatment of bleeding and asthma. A poultice of the bark has been applied to the head to allay the pain of headaches. The poultice has also been used to treat sores and bleeding cuts. An infusion of the leaves is used as an analgesic in the treatment of headaches. The fresh bark contains salicin, which probably decomposes into salicylic acid (closely related to aspirin) in the human body. This is used as an anodyne and febrifuge.
Anodyne: Relieves pain, it is milder than an analgesic.
Antiasthmatic: Treats asthma.
Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.
Febrifuge: Reduces fevers.
Haemostatic: Controls internal bleeding.
Other
Rating:
How it is grown
Succeeds in most soils, including wet, ill-drained or intermittently flooded soils, but prefers a damp, heavy soil in a sunny position. Rarely thrives on chalk. A fast-growing but short-lived plant. Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus. Although the flowers are produced in catkins early in the year, they are pollinated by bees and other insects rather than by the wind. They form a valuable early food for bumble bees. Closely related to S. pentandra. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.
Propagating it: Seed - must be surface sown as soon as it is ripe in late spring. It has a very short viability, perhaps as little as a few days. Cuttings of mature wood of the current year's growth, November to February in a sheltered outdoor bed or planted straight into their permanent position and given a good weed-suppressing mulch. Very easy. Plant into their permanent positions in the autumn. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, June to August in a frame. Very easy.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Secondary; Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade;
Habit: Shrub
Hardiness: 0-0
Growth: Fast
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: No shade
Moisture: Moist, wet