Salix caprea - Great Sallow

Salix caprea, or goat willow, is a small tree or bush native to Europe and Central and Northern Asia. In male individuals, the bare and shiny branches are adorned with unique silver male catkins in late winter. With a silky texture, they are adorned with bright golden anthers filled with pollen, which are highly appreciated by pollinating insects. In female individuals, the catkins are more discreet, with a light green colour. This "goat willow", with its light and elegant design, is also a hardy plant that is very easy to grow in any relatively shallow soil, even if it is relatively dry in summer. Its branches covered with velvety catkins are superb in bouquets.

Salix caprea belongs to the Salicaceae family. It is a deciduous botanical species native to Central Europe and Central and Northern Asia. The goat willow is a pioneering and ubiquitous species, a light essence that is less exclusively associated with wet places than most other species in the Salix genus.

It has a flexible habit, with an oval to rounded crown. It is often found in coppices, due to its more moderate size and more natural appearance. Thus, the adult size of the goat willow can vary considerably, ranging from 2 m to 10 m (6.6 ft to 32.8 ft) in height and 3 m to 8 m (9.8 ft to 26.2 ft) in spread. The trunk is covered with a smooth grey-green bark, which takes on a grey-ashen colour and a cracked and fissured texture with age. The young branches are pubescent, then take on a brown-yellowish colour with a glossy finish. The deciduous foliage is composed of thick, leathery, dark green leaves on the upper side, and whitish and downy on the underside. They turn yellow in autumn before falling. They are broadly elliptical in shape and measure 5 cm to 8 cm (2 in to 3.1 in) in length and 2.5 cm to 4 cm (1 in to 1.6 in) in width. Flowering occurs with catkins in February-March, before the leaves appear, on one-year-old branches. The male catkins are very decorative, pleasantly scented, nectar-rich, and honey-producing. These ovoid to oblong catkins, 3 cm to 7 cm (1.2 in to 2.8 in) long, are initially covered with white-silver silky hairs and release very small decorative yellow flowers covered in pollen. The female catkins are more discreet, erect, and light green. Dioecious, the goat willow bears its male and female flowers on separate plants.

The goat willow is highly resistant to frost and is very easy to grow in ordinary soil in all regions. Unlike most of its relatives, it does not require a moist or waterlogged soil throughout the year and can withstand periods of moderate drought with occasional watering. Prune it every year after flowering to encourage it to branch out and produce numerous flowering branches. It can be placed as a standalone specimen, surrounded by early-flowering bulbs (snowdrops, crocuses, fritillaries, hyacinths), in a free hedge, or at the back of a border in coppice form. It is perfect in a naturally-inspired garden. Consider creating bouquets with its branches adorned with silver catkins. In a vase, they beautifully complement those of Prunus triloba, flowering cherry, and plum trees that the warmth of the house will awaken.

Properties:

Like all willows, this species contains a substance similar to aspirin in its bark. It is highly nectar-rich and honey-producing: bees that forage on it produce a honey with a golden yellow colour, iridescent with green, which takes on amber to beige highlights as it ages. Its flavour is sweet, floral and slightly woody. Relatively rare, this honey is mainly produced in the west of France. Its foliage was once used as fodder for goats.