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halberd willow

bilberry willow, blueberry willow, low blueberry willow

Habit Plants 0.2–4 m. Stems: branches reddish brown, not glaucous, (slightly glossy), pilose; branchlets yellow-brown or red-brown, villous or pilose. Plants 0.1–0.6(–1) m, (forming clones by layering).
Stems

(decumbent);

branches gray-brown, red-brown, or yellow-brown, not to strongly glaucous (dull or slightly glossy), pubescent;

branchlets gray-brown, red-brown, or yellow-brown, sparsely pubescent.

Leaves

stipules foliaceous, apex acute to acuminate;

petiole convex to flat, or shallowly grooved adaxially, 2–6(–9) mm, pilose or villous adaxially;

largest medial blade narrowly to broadly elliptic or narrowly ovate to ovate, 25–92 × 10–45 mm, 1.5–2.6(–3.4) times as long as wide, base convex, cuneate, or rounded, margins slightly revolute or flat, shallowly serrulate or entire, apex acuminate, acute, or convex, abaxial surface glaucous, sparsely pubescent, hairs wavy, adaxial dull to slightly glossy, pilose, sparsely pubescent or glabrous, midrib hairy, (hairs white and ferruginous);

proximal blade margins entire or finely serrulate;

juvenile blade sometimes reddish, sparsely pubescent abaxially, hairs white, sometimes also ferruginous.

stipules rudimentary, foliaceous, or absent on early ones, foliaceous on late ones (0.2–1.8(–5) mm);

petiole deeply to shallowly grooved adaxially, 1.5–8 mm, glabrous or pubescent adaxially;

largest medial blade (sometimes amphistomatous), elliptic, narrowly elliptic, obovate, or broadly obovate, 17–74 × 8–30 mm, 1.2–4.5 times as long as wide, base cuneate, convex, or subcordate, margins flat, serrulate, crenulate, or sinuate, apex acute, convex, or acuminate, abaxial surface not glaucous, glabrous, adaxial slightly glossy, glabrous;

proximal blade margins crenate;

juvenile blade reddish or yellowish green, glabrous.

Staminate flowers

adaxial nectary oblong or square, 0.3–0.7 mm;

filaments distinct or basally connate, glabrous;

anthers purple turning yellow, 0.4–0.6 mm.

adaxial nectary oblong, ovate, or square, 0.2–0.34–0.4 mm;

filaments distinct, glabrous;

anthers purple turning yellow, 0.3–0.6 mm.

Pistillate flowers

adaxial nectary square or obovate, 0.3–0.6 mm, usually shorter than stipe;

stipe 0.4–1.2 mm;

ovary pyriform, glabrous, beak gradually tapering to styles;

ovules 12–22 per ovary;

styles connate (sometimes distinct 1/2 their lengths), 0.2–0.5 mm;

stigmas flat, abaxially non-papillate with rounded tip, or broadly cylindrical, or 2 plump lobes, 0.2–0.32–0.44 mm.

adaxial nectary square, oblong, or ovate, 0.2–0.4 mm, shorter than stipe;

stipe 0.6–1.7 mm;

ovary pyriform, glabrous, beak gradually tapering to or slightly bulged below styles;

ovules (6–)10–14 per ovary;

styles connate or distinct 1/2 their lengths, 0.3–0.7 mm;

stigmas flat, abaxially non-papillate with rounded tip, or 2 plump lobes, 0.16–0.23–0.32 mm.

Capsules

3.2–8 mm.

4–6 mm.

Catkins

flowering as leaves emerge; staminate slender, stout, or subglobose, 14.5–34.5 × 8–12 mm, flowering branchlet 1–7 mm; pistillate moderately densely or loosely flowered, slender or stout, 21–59 × 6–16 mm, flowering branchlet 1.5–9 mm;

floral bract brown or bicolor, 1.2–1.8 mm, apex acute to rounded, abaxially glabrate to hairy, hairs straight to wavy.

flowering as leaves emerge; staminate stout, 11.5–39 × 5–14 mm, flowering branchlet 0.5–6 mm; pistillate moderately densely flowered or densely flowered, slender or stout, 16–46(–50 in fruit) × 4–15 mm, flowering branchlet 1.5–12 mm;

floral bract brown, black, tawny, or bicolor, 0.4–1.1 mm, apex retuse or acute, abaxially hairy throughout or proximally, hairs curly or wavy.

2n

= 38.

= 38.

Salix hastata

Salix myrtillifolia

Phenology Flowering early Jun-late Jul. Flowering early May-late Jul.
Habitat Sandy and gravelly river bars and floodplains, lakeshores, sand dunes and blowouts, Dryas tundra, alpine sedge meadows, balsam poplar thickets, openings in upland spruce-willow forests Treed bogs, fens, stream banks, subalpine spruce thickets, Pinus contorta woods, sand dunes, coal spoils
Elevation 0-1200 m (0-3900 ft) 90-2800 m (300-9200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; NT; YT; Eurasia (Norway, Russia, Siberia)
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; CO; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NT; NU; ON; SK; YT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Salix hastata is characterized by branches pilose with short, curved hairs; juvenile and mature leaves with white or ferruginous hairs adaxially, glaucous or not abaxially; and ovaries often reddish. See 61. S. barclayi and 64. S. farriae.

Subspecies subintegrifolia, characterized by entire or subentire leaf margins, is recognized in Flora Nordica as the major northern Eurasian race of Salix hastata, and is described as occurring across Russia into northwestern North America (B. Jonsell and T. Karlsson 2000+, vol. 1). Because leaf marginal toothing is highly variable throughout the species range (E. Hultén 1967), the subspecies is not recognized here or in Russia (A. K. Skvortsov 1999).

Hybrids:

Salix hastata forms natural hybrids with S. barclayi.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Salix myrtillifolia occurs in Nunavut on Akimiski Island in James Bay.

The complex of species related to Salix myrtillifolia includes S. arizonica, S. ballii, S. boothii, and S. pseudomyrsinites. Two are diploid (S. arizonica and S. myrtillifolia), and two are tetraploid (S. boothii and S. pseudomyrsinites); the chromosome number of S. ballii is unknown. They have been treated taxonomically in different ways, but are relatively distinct in their morphology, ecology, and geography. Salix myrtillifolia has outlying populations represented by single collections each from Colorado, Quebec, and Wyoming. Specimens attributed to this species from the Gaspe Peninsula, Quebec, and the Northern Peninsula, Newfoundland, all have evidence of leaf glaucescence and are S. ballii. See 57. S. pseudomyrsinites and 58. S. ballii for more description.

Hybrids:

Salix myrtillifolia forms natural hybrids with S. candida.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 116. FNA vol. 7, p. 109.
Parent taxa Salicaceae > Salix > subg. Vetrix > sect. Hastatae Salicaceae > Salix > subg. Vetrix > sect. Hastatae
Sibling taxa
S. alaxensis, S. alba, S. amygdaloides, S. arbusculoides, S. arctica, S. arctophila, S. argyrocarpa, S. arizonica, S. athabascensis, S. atrocinerea, S. aurita, S. babylonica, S. ballii, S. barclayi, S. barrattiana, S. bebbiana, S. bonplandiana, S. boothii, S. brachycarpa, S. breweri, S. calcicola, S. candida, S. caprea, S. caroliniana, S. cascadensis, S. chamissonis, S. chlorolepis, S. cinerea, S. columbiana, S. commutata, S. cordata, S. daphnoides, S. delnortensis, S. discolor, S. drummondiana, S. eastwoodiae, S. elaeagnos, S. eriocephala, S. euxina, S. exigua, S. famelica, S. farriae, S. floridana, S. fuscescens, S. geyeriana, S. glauca, S. gooddingii, S. herbacea, S. hookeriana, S. humboldtiana, S. humilis, S. interior, S. irrorata, S. jejuna, S. jepsonii, S. laevigata, S. lasiandra, S. lasiolepis, S. lemmonii, S. ligulifolia, S. lucida, S. lutea, S. maccalliana, S. melanopsis, S. monochroma, S. monticola, S. myricoides, S. myrsinifolia, S. myrtillifolia, S. nigra, S. niphoclada, S. nivalis, S. nummularia, S. orestera, S. ovalifolia, S. pedicellaris, S. pellita, S. pentandra, S. petiolaris, S. petrophila, S. phlebophylla, S. planifolia, S. polaris, S. prolixa, S. pseudomonticola, S. pseudomyrsinites, S. pulchra, S. purpurea, S. pyrifolia, S. raupii, S. reticulata, S. richardsonii, S. rotundifolia, S. scouleriana, S. sericea, S. serissima, S. sessilifolia, S. setchelliana, S. silicicola, S. sitchensis, S. sphenophylla, S. stolonifera, S. taxifolia, S. thurberi, S. tracyi, S. triandra, S. turnorii, S. tweedyi, S. tyrrellii, S. uva-ursi, S. vestita, S. viminalis, S. wolfii, S. ×fragilis, S. ×jesupii, S. ×pendulina, S. ×sepulcralis, S. ×smithiana
S. alaxensis, S. alba, S. amygdaloides, S. arbusculoides, S. arctica, S. arctophila, S. argyrocarpa, S. arizonica, S. athabascensis, S. atrocinerea, S. aurita, S. babylonica, S. ballii, S. barclayi, S. barrattiana, S. bebbiana, S. bonplandiana, S. boothii, S. brachycarpa, S. breweri, S. calcicola, S. candida, S. caprea, S. caroliniana, S. cascadensis, S. chamissonis, S. chlorolepis, S. cinerea, S. columbiana, S. commutata, S. cordata, S. daphnoides, S. delnortensis, S. discolor, S. drummondiana, S. eastwoodiae, S. elaeagnos, S. eriocephala, S. euxina, S. exigua, S. famelica, S. farriae, S. floridana, S. fuscescens, S. geyeriana, S. glauca, S. gooddingii, S. hastata, S. herbacea, S. hookeriana, S. humboldtiana, S. humilis, S. interior, S. irrorata, S. jejuna, S. jepsonii, S. laevigata, S. lasiandra, S. lasiolepis, S. lemmonii, S. ligulifolia, S. lucida, S. lutea, S. maccalliana, S. melanopsis, S. monochroma, S. monticola, S. myricoides, S. myrsinifolia, S. nigra, S. niphoclada, S. nivalis, S. nummularia, S. orestera, S. ovalifolia, S. pedicellaris, S. pellita, S. pentandra, S. petiolaris, S. petrophila, S. phlebophylla, S. planifolia, S. polaris, S. prolixa, S. pseudomonticola, S. pseudomyrsinites, S. pulchra, S. purpurea, S. pyrifolia, S. raupii, S. reticulata, S. richardsonii, S. rotundifolia, S. scouleriana, S. sericea, S. serissima, S. sessilifolia, S. setchelliana, S. silicicola, S. sitchensis, S. sphenophylla, S. stolonifera, S. taxifolia, S. thurberi, S. tracyi, S. triandra, S. turnorii, S. tweedyi, S. tyrrellii, S. uva-ursi, S. vestita, S. viminalis, S. wolfii, S. ×fragilis, S. ×jesupii, S. ×pendulina, S. ×sepulcralis, S. ×smithiana
Synonyms S. farriae var. walpolei, S. hastata subsp. subintegrifolia, S. walpolei
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 1017. (1753) Andersson: Öfvers. Kongl. Vetensk.-Akad. Förh. 15: 132. (1858)
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