Family: Salicaceae, Willow view all from this family

Description Many-stemmed shrub or small tree with open rounded crown; silky, furry catkins appear in late winter and early spring.
Height: 20' (6 m).
Diameter: 8" (20 cm).
Leaves: 1 1/2-4 1/4" (4-11 cm) long, 3/8-1 1/4" (1-3 cm) wide. Lance-shaped or narrowly elliptical; irregularly wavy-toothed; stiff; hairy when young; slender-stalked. Shiny green above, whitish beneath.
Bark: gray, fissured, scaly.
Twigs: brown; stout; hairy when young.
Flowers: catkins 1-2 1/2" (2.5-6 cm) long; cylindrical; thick with blackish scales; covered with silky whitish hairs; in late winter and early spring long before leaves.
Fruit: 5/16-1/2" (8-12 mm) long; narrow capsules; light brown; finely hairy, in early spring before leaves.

Habitat Wet meadows soils and borders of streams and lakes; usually in coniferous forests.

Range N. British Columbia to Labrador, south to Delaware, west to NE. Missouri, and north to N. Wyoming and North Dakota; to 4000' (1219 m).

Discussion The large flower buds burst and expose their soft silky hair, or "pussy fur," early in the year. In winter, cut Pussy Willow twigs can be put in water and the flowers forced at warm temperatures. Some twigs will produce beautiful golden stamens, while others will bear slender greenish pistils. The Latin species name refers to the contrasting colors of the leaf surfaces, which aid in recognition.