Salix discolor Muhl.
Pussy willow, American willow
Pussy willows are North American native plants.
Plants: Pussy willows are highly variable in appearance, in part because they hybridize naturally with related plants. Typically shrubs, they may reach 30′ (9.1 m) in height, making them small trees. Young stems are yellowish- to light-green, becoming red or brown when they get larger, and finally gray and furrowed. Their “trunks” may be single or multiply branched.
Leaves: Alternate, roughly elliptical in shape, with a prominent central vein, 1–5″ (3–13 cm) long, 2 to 5 times longer than they are wide.
Flowers: Beautiful soft silvery-gray ovoids, actually types of catkins, typically about 1″ (2.5 cm) long, but up to 4½″ (12 cm). The male catkins produce, well, zillions of teeny yellow stamens with yellow tips; female catkins are greenish.
Fruits: Small brown capsules, ¼–⅜″ (7–12 mm) long, vaguely banana-shaped, that look like buds
Habitats: Moist soils near open water.
Online References:
5/16/2024 · Ridge Trail, Freeport, Maine 
4/21/2024 · Cathance River Nature Preserve, Topsham, Maine 
5/4/2013 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 8″ (14 × 20 cm) 
ID is uncertain 
4/6/2021 · Otter Brrok Preserve, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9.4 cm) 
The cone-like structure on the tip is a gall created by an insect, Rhabdophaga strobiloides · 11/17/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 2½ × 2½″ (7.3 × 7 cm) ID is uncertain 
5/16/2024 · Ridge Trail, Freeport, Maine 
The cone-like structure on the tip is a gall created by an insect, Rhabdophaga strobiloides · 7/9/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 4½″ (16 × 11 cm) ID is uncertain 
1/5/2026 · Ecology Center, Topsham, Maine 
5/7/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 11″ (18 × 27 cm) ID is uncertain 
Male catkins. · 4/7/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9.2 cm) ID is uncertain 
4/3/2010 · Mt. Battie (Elev. 780'), Camden, Maine · ≈ 5 × 3″ (12 × 7.5 cm) ID is uncertain 
Male (staminate) flowers. · 4/3/2010 · Mt. Battie, Camden, Maine · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9.2 cm) ID is uncertain 
5/4/2013 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 6″ (14 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain 
The cone-like structure on the tip is a gall created by an insect, Rhabdophaga strobiloides · 11/17/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 4½ × 4″ (11 × 10 cm) ID is uncertain 
4/11/2023 · Otter Brrok Preserve, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine 
5/16/2024 · Ridge Trail, Freeport, Maine 
3/23/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9.2 cm) 
4/3/2010 · Mt. Battie, Camden, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (14 × 10 cm) ID is uncertain 
The cone-like structure on the tip is a gall created by an insect, Rhabdophaga strobiloides · 11/15/2011 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 3½ × 3″ (8.9 × 7.9 cm) 
Male catkins. · 4/7/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 5″ (17 × 13 cm) ID is uncertain 
4/24/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 2½ × 2½″ (6.6 × 7.1 cm) ID is uncertain 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Rosidae | Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more |
| Order | Malpighiales | A broad group encompassing 16,000 species |
| Family | Salicaceae | Willow family |
| Genus | Salix | Latin for “willow,” meaning “to leap or spring,” a reference to its fast growth |
| Species | discolor | “Of two or different colors” |
Salix discolor description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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