| General Description | Salix reticulata is a low-growing, deciduous, dwarf shrub with prostrate
(but occasionally erect) stems that root along the ground. It tends to form mats and patches as it grows. It is a dioecious plant. |
| ID Characteristic | This shrub can form clonal colonies by layering, which occurs when stems
or branches along the ground start to root. Leaves can be elliptic, circular, or oblong. New leaves that emerge in the spring are covered in fine white hairs that insulate the leaves and keep
them warm while still allowing sunlight to pass through for photosynthesis. |
| Shape | This is a very small, prostrate shrub. Shorter stems may be erect and it is capable of reaching small heights over time, but it generally remains flat and forms patches along the ground. |
| Landscape | Salix reticulata is an excellent groundcover plant, as it naturally forms mats and colonies rather than growing upwards. It is suitable for rock or alpine gardens and can make for an attractive accent shrub. It is generally a very low-maintenance plant, but users should monitor its growth to ensure it does not spread more than desired. Its flowers are apparently very attractive to bees and it would make a good addition to pollinator gardens. |
| Propagation | This plant propagates naturally by layering. Its long stems trail along the ground and root wherever they are able. Clones can then be separated from the parent plant. Gardeners can also propagate the plant in early summer with softwood cuttings, or in winter with hardwood cuttings. Softwood cuttings should be 5-10 cm long, made just below the node or leaf joint, dipped in a rooting solution, and placed in a bright, humid propagation case until the cuttings root (about 6-10 weeks). Harden the cuttings for two weeks after they root, then pot them individually. Hardwood cuttings should be taken from healthy shoots that have recently grown. Remove the soft tip growth and cut the shoot into sections 15-30 cm long just below a bud. Dip the cut end in a rooting solution. Plant the cuttings outdoors in containers or trenches lined with sand and filled with compost. After periods of frost, check on the cuttings for damage and replenish or firm the compost if necessary. Leave the cuttings in place until the following autumn. They should not be allowed to dry out through the summer. |
| Cultivation | Salix reticulata is a very versatile and hardy plant. It does well in full sun to part shade, can be sheltered or exposed, and will survive in most any soil texture as long as it is moist and well-draining. It can live in soils with a pH range of 4.2-8.5.31 It is not salt or pollution tolerant, but it can survive extreme cold. It is very low maintenance and does not require regular pruning. |
| Pests | This plant may become infested with aphids, caterpillars, sawflies, and leaf beetles. Sawflies saw open leaves and lay their eggs in the cut. Their larvae feed on the leaves and can quickly defoliate a plant. Leaf beetles damage plants by grazing on the upper layers of
leaves. This plant may also be prone to fungal rust diseases, which appear as pustules on leaves and may kill the plant if left untreated. |
| Habitat | This hardy little plant can be found in various natural environments. It does well on alpine slopes and in alpine meadows and snow accumulation areas. It also thrives in arctic tundras, sand dunes, and meadows, as well as in forested mountainous areas. Other habitats include cliffs and ledges, snow beds, spruce woods, treed bogs, sand or gravel beaches, colluvial slopes, and stream banks. |
| Bark/Stem Description | The stems of this plant are generally prostrate and trail along the
ground, where they will root. Shorter stems may be erect. Branches have short internodes and are light brown in colour; younger branches range from greenish-brown to yellow-brown or red-brown. Branches and branchlets are generally glabrous but may be somewhat glaucous. |
| Flower/Leaf Bud Description | The leaf buds of all Salix species are covered by a single bud
scale. This plant’s buds are glabrous, sometimes glaucous, and may be pubescent at the tip. The bud scale persists at the base of new shoots. The catkins emerge from sub-apical buds. |
| Leaf Description | The leaves range from 15-55 mm long and can be 7-45 mm wide. They are
quite thick and have sunken veins on the adaxial side and raised veins on the abaxial side. They are simple and alternately arranged. The petiole is 4-23 mm long and generally glabrous, but can be sparsely hairy.55 The leaf shape ranges from elliptic to circular to oblong. The apex (tip) can be obtuse, rounded, and sometimes retuse. The base can be obtuse, rounded, or cordate. The margin is usually entire, but is often revolute. The upper side is dark green and glossy and the underside is paler green. Scientists are studying the variations in leaf shape across continents and have found a correlation between shape and latitude and longitude, but not between shape and elevation. |
| Flower Description | The flowers do not have a perianth (sepals and petals). They grow in the
form of cylindrical catkins, which grow on a peduncle (stalk) on the leafy branchlets. The plant is dioecious, and each plant will only produce either male or female reproductive structures. Female catkins are 10-60 mm long and male catkins are 11-52 mm long; nectaries present in both. Bracts are ovate or oblong and dark red or tawny in colour. The flowers can vary in colour, with most being yellow and some purple. |
| Fruit Description | The fruit of this plant are capsules that form on female catkins. The capsules are dehiscent. The fruit may be 4.5-5 mm long and is often covered in soft, flat hairs. |
| Colour Description | The upper side of Salix reticulata’s leaves is dark green and glossy and the underside is a much paler green. It does not possess notable autumn colour. Flower colour can vary from purple to pale yellow. There is also some variation in bark colour: most is light brown in colour, but newer growth can be greenish-brown to yellow-brown or red-brown. |
| Texture Description | Salix reticulata’s foliage is coarse. As a deciduous plant, it will lose its foliage through autumn and winter. |
