Salix discolor Muhl.

vernacular pussy willow — species · Salicaceae

USDA: SADI
GBIF: 5372785
Rank: species

pussy willow (Salix discolor) — Platephotograph · Jackson NesbitCC BY-NC source · iNaturalist ↗

§2Habit & range

Growth habit: Shrub, Tree
Duration: Perennial
Group: Dicot
Family: Salicaceae Mirb.
Genus: Salix

§2a

Native status, by region

CAN Canada Native
L48 Lower 48 States Native

§2b

County-level range

· 6 counties across 2 states/territories

Legend Native · 6 Introduced · 0 Both · 0 Hover a county for detail.

§3Cultivation specs · USDA

Recorded by the USDA Plant Materials Program.

§3a

Tolerances

Drought: Low
Shade: Low
Moisture use: High
Fire: Medium
Salinity: None
Anaerobic: High
CaCO₃: Medium
Hedging: Low

§3b

Climate & soil

Cold tolerance: -33 °F minimum
Frost-free days: 95 min.
Precipitation: 20–50 in/yr
pH range: 4–7
Root depth: 20 in min.
Fertility need: Low
Soil texture: coarse, medium, fine

§3c

Form & growth

Growth form: Single Stem
Growth rate: Rapid
Lifespan: Long
Mature height: 40 ft
Height @ 20 y: 20 ft
Foliage texture: Coarse
Foliage colour: Green
Porosity (summer): Moderate
Porosity (winter): Porous
Flower colour: White
Fire resistant: No
N fixation: None
Toxicity: None

§3d

Reproduction

Bloom period: Winter
Seed abundance: Medium
Seed begins: Spring
Seed ends: Spring
Spread rate: Rapid
Stratify: No
Propagation: seed, cuttings, bare root, container

§3e

Use & availability

Commercial availability: Routinely Available
Nursery stock: No
Browse palatability: Medium
Palatable, human: No
Lumber: No
Fuelwood: Low
Christmas tree: No

§4Counties, by state

Recorded in 6 counties across 2 states/territories.

Montana view state ↗ 1 N ▾

Deer Lodge 30023

Rhode Island view state ↗ 5 N ▾

§5Sources & provenance

USDA PLANTS

Symbol, taxonomy, distribution, cultivation specs, native status. Public domain.

plants.usda.gov/SADI ↗

GBIF Backbone

Canonical taxonomic identity, synonym resolution, cross-refs. CC0.

gbif.org/species/5372785 ↗

Record version

Cached and built locally. Source version on this record:

usda-plants-mt-2026-05-25

fetched 2026-05-25T18:27:19Z