Salix caprea, known as goat willow, pussy willow or great sallow, is a common species of willow native to Europe and western and central Asia.
Description
It is a deciduous shrub or small tree, reaching a height of , rarely to 13 m.
The leaves are 3–12 cm long and from 2–8 cm wide, broader than most other willows.
The flowers are soft silky, and silvery 3-7-cm-long catkins are produced in early spring before the new leaves appear; the male and female catkins are on different plants (dioecious). The male catkins mature yellow at pollen release, the female catkins mature pale green.
The fruit is a small capsule 5–10 mm long containing numerous minute seeds embedded in fine, cottony hairs. The seeds are very small (about 0.2 mm) with the fine hairs aiding dispersal; they require bare soil to germinate.
The two varieties are: This, and the common name goat willow, probably derive from the first known illustration of the species in Hieronymus Bock's 1546 Herbal, where the plant is shown being browsed by a goat. The species was historically also widely used as a browse for goats, to which Bock's illustration may refer.
Ecology
S. caprea occurs both in wet/damp environments, such as riverbanks and lake shores, and in drier sites, wherever bare soil becomes available due to ground disturbance.
Cultivation and uses
thumb|170px|A willow flute
A small number of cultivars have been selected for garden use. The most common is S. caprea 'Kilmarnock', discovered by James Smith, with stiffly pendulous shoots forming a mop-head; it is a male clone. A similar female clone is S. caprea 'Weeping Sally'. As they do not form a leader, they are grafted on erect stems of other willows; the height of these cultivars is determined by the height at which the graft is made.