Salix cinerea
Salix pseudomonticola
gray willow, large gray or gray willow, large gray willow
false mountain willow, serviceberry willow
stipules rudimentary or foliaceous on early ones, foliaceous on late ones, apex acute or rounded;
petiole convex to flat adaxially, 4–15 mm, tomentose adaxially;
largest medial blade elliptic, broadly elliptic, oblanceolate, or obovate, 65–105 × 22–52 mm, 2–3 times as long as wide, base convex or cuneate, margins slightly revolute, entire, crenate, or sinuate, (glands submarginal), apex acuminate or convex, abaxial surface glaucous, tomentose, hairs erect or spreading, curly, adaxial dull or slightly glossy, pubescent or tomentose;
proximal blade margins entire;
juvenile blade yellowish green, sparsely to densely tomentose abaxially, hairs white.
stipules foliaceous, (prominent, 5–9–15 mm), apex rounded to acute, sometimes acuminate;
petiole (usually reddish), shallowly grooved, or convex to flat adaxially, 6–20 mm, short-silky or velvety adaxially;
largest medial blade broadly to narrowly elliptic, or ovate to broadly obovate, (25–)30–86(–118) × 12–51 mm, 1.4–3 times as long as wide, base convex, rounded, cuneate, subcordate, cordate, or sometimes irregularly lobed, margins flat, serrulate or crenate, apex acute, acuminate, or convex, abaxial surface glaucous, glabrous, pubescent, or pilose, hairs wavy, adaxial slightly glossy or dull, glabrous, puberulent, pubescent, or pilose, midrib hairy;
proximal blade margins entire or serrulate;
juvenile blade reddish, glabrous or pubescent abaxially, hairs white, sometimes also ferruginous.
adaxial nectary oblong or ovate, 0.5–1 mm;
filaments distinct, glabrous or hairy basally;
anthers yellow or purple turning yellow, ellipsoid or shortly cylindrical, 0.7–1 mm.
adaxial nectary oblong, 0.3–1 mm;
filaments distinct or connate less than 1/2 their lengths, glabrous;
anthers purple turning yellow, 0.4–0.5 mm.
adaxial nectary oblong or square, 0.4–1 mm, shorter than stipe;
stipe 1.2–2.7 mm;
ovary pyriform, long-silky, beak slightly bulged below styles;
ovules 12 per ovary;
styles 0.2–0.5 mm;
stigmas slenderly or broadly cylindrical, 0.3–0.6 mm.
adaxial nectary oblong, flask-shaped, 0.3–0.8 mm, shorter than stipe;
stipe 0.5–0.8–3 mm;
ovary pyriform or obclavate, glabrous, beak gradually tapering to styles;
ovules 18 per ovary;
styles (0.5–)0.7–1.8 mm;
stigmas flat, abaxially non-papillate with rounded tip, or 2 plump lobes, 0.1–0.21–0.29 mm.
5–5.6 mm.
4–7 mm.
flowering before leaves emerge; staminate stout or subglobose, 26–39 × 12–26 mm, flowering branchlet 0–5 mm; pistillate densely flowered, stout or subglobose, 27–54(–75 in fruit) × 4–15 mm, flowering branchlet 1–5(–10) mm;
floral bract dark brown, black, or bicolor, 2–3 mm, apex acute or convex, abaxially hairy, hairs straight.
flowering before leaves emerge; staminate stout, 16–39 × 10–12 mm, flowering branchlet 0 mm; pistillate densely or moderately densely flowered, slender to globose, 17–73 × 8–20 mm, flowering branchlet 0–5 mm;
floral bract brown or black, 1–2.4 mm, apex rounded or acute, abaxially hairy, hairs straight.
= 76.
= 38.
Salix cinerea
Salix pseudomonticola
The Ohio occurrence of Salix cinerea is based on information from T. Cooperrider (pers. comm.).
Salix cinerea and S. atrocinerea are very closely related. Their occurrence in the flora area, as naturalized introductions, is not well understood, probably because they usually are introduced under the name S. caprea, and that species often is not treated in North American floristic literature (e.g., C. K. Schneider 1921; M. L. Fernald 1950). They probably are introductions of long-standing brought to the New World for their value as ornamentals and bee-plants. Salix atrocinerea was first documented in the southeastern United States (G. W. Argus 1986) after plants with ferruginous hairs and prominently striate wood were found in North Carolina; since that time, it has been found in other states and provinces. In the northeastern states, S. atrocinerea and S. cinerea are thought to be invasive species. The species do reproduce by seed and hundreds of seedlings were observed in a drained reservoir (A. Zinovjev, pers. comm.) and on sandy pond shores (T. Rawinski, pers. comm.), where they are thought to compete with native species.
The presence of long, prominent, striae on the peeled wood of 4–5 year old branches is commonly used in European literature (K. H. Rechinger 1993; A. K. Skvortsov 1999) to separate Salix cinerea and S. atrocinerea from S. caprea etc., in which the wood is smooth or with fewer, shorter striae. In the flora area, long striae also occur in S. bebbiana, S. discolor, and S. humilis, but usually they are not as long as or as prominent in S. cinerea and S. atrocinerea. Some floras (e.g., F. Martini and P. Paiero 1988) use the relative prominence of striae to separate S. cinerea and S. atrocinerea, but their separation remains difficult. The presence of ferruginous hairs on the leaves of S. atrocinerea is the best diagnostic characteristic, but they are not always present or easily observed. For a comparison of these species, see the key to species under subg. Vetrix. For further discussion of morphologies, see Salix ×smithiana Willdenow [p. 132] and 76. S. discolor.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Salix pseudomonticola is characterized by precocious flowering; catkins sessile; juvenile leaf blades, petioles, and proximal midribs reddish; stipules prominent; and leaves and branchlets sparsely hairy. Branches older than two years have a distinctive pattern, which consists of a series of longitudinal splits in epidermis produced as the branch expands. The edge of epidermis around the split, where it has separated from the branch, is yellow and contrasts with the red-brown branch to which the epidermis still adheres.
Vegetative specimens of Salix pseudomonticola with yellow-brown branches can be confused with S. famelica. They may be separated by their juvenile leaf margins prominently and closely gland-dotted; stipules usually prominent, sometimes early deciduous; leaves broader (1.4–3 times as long as wide versus 2.6–7 in S. famelica); and petioles slender and often longer in relation to blade length. The possibility of hybridization needs study.
Vegetative specimens of Salix pseudomonticola can be distinguished from S. pyrifolia by juvenile leaves reddish and almost always with some ferruginous hairs, versus yellowish-green and glabrous or with white hairs, and mature leaves usually dull adaxially versus glossy.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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