Goat Willow (redirected from Salix caprea)

Goat Willow 

(Salix caprea), a tree of the genus Salix and family Salicaceae. It grows to 12-15 m; it sometimes becomes bushlike as a result of injury. The leaves are mostly broadly elliptical, thickly downy underneath. The bracts are black. The plant flowers long before the leaves open. The Eurasian species has a very wide range—up to arctic Scandinavia in the north and as far as Sakhalin in the east. It grows in forests, in cleared areas, at the borders of forests, along the sides of roads, and elsewhere. It is nectariferous early in the season. The bark is used for tanning hides. The leaves and young shoots are readily eaten by sheep, goats, cattle, and horses.

REFERENCES

Skvortsov, A. K. Ivy SSSR: Sistematicheskii i geograficheskii obzor. Moscow, 1968.

M. E. KIRPICHNIKOV