| General Description | Salix herbacea is a small deciduous shrub that stands no more than 6 cm tall and has tiny round, green leaves. The horizontally growing trunk stays under the soil and forms a green mat of ground cover above the surface. |
| ID Characteristic | Short and creeping branches cover the ground with bright green foliage. Red flowers appear on the females in late summer to early autumn. |
| Shape | Its horizontal trunk stays underground, sprouting tiny, round green leaves just above the soil, producing ground cover. |
| Landscape | Can be used in cold-weather and rock gardens as ground cover. |
| Propagation | Can be propagated with cuttings, best if collected in the winter. |
| Cultivation | Prefers well drained, acidic soil and full to partial sun. Salix Herbacea prefers drier locations, but has also been found in wetter areas where the roots grow deep enough to remain undisturbed by too much water. |
| Pests | Leaf galls may pose issues. |
| Notable Specimens | Cambridge University Botanic Garden, Cambridge, England.
National Botanic Gardens of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland.
Medicinal Gardens, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland. |
| Habitat | Found in pastures and beneath the snow beds of arctic and alpine regions, usually protected from the elements by snow drifts. Can sometimes be found in wetter areas like marshes or bogs where its roots are able to reach less moist soil. |
| Bark/Stem Description | The bark of Salix herbacea is thin and medium brown with a slight shine when young. Older bark exhibits a rough, grey texture, but still notably thin. |
| Flower/Leaf Bud Description | The buds of the Salix herbacea are covered by a single scale. Catkins form between two to four leaves. Female flowers are bright red to brown and cone shaped, whereas male catkins are thin, yellow (sometimes pink) and
stalk like. |
| Leaf Description | Small, bright green leaves grow sessile on the branch in alternate formation, with crenate edges. Obovate with arcuate venation and a slight cup shape. |
| Flower Description | Salix herbacea is unisex and flowers in the later weeks of June to September. Female inflorescence 3.25 mm – 13 mm long and have fleshy, cone-shaped, bright red to brown styles and ovaries, and tiny prong- like stigma present at the tips. Male inflorescences are measured at 2mm – 7 mm long, and have a pronounced stamen on the tip of yellow (or pink) and white filaments that are connected to pronounced, concave nectaries. |
| Fruit Description | Ripened fruits bear resemblance to female catkins but come in smaller clusters and are dark brown in colour. The fruit will eventually burst and produce willow fluff. |
| Colour Description | The most pronounced colour this plant displays is a bright, vivid green from it's leaves. During its flowering season, bright red and yellow catkins appear on each plant, adding hints of colour. Once ripened, the colour of the inflorescences fades from bright red and darkens to a
leathery or rusty brown hue before producing white fluff in the autumn. |
| Texture Description | Leaves are typically glabrous and crenate; they rarely have hairs on outer margin. Young bark is warm, light brown and slightly thickens with age, taking on a dull grey-brown colour and rough texture while remaining underground. |