Salix starkeana

The pale willow is up to 1 meter high, prostrate to arching ascending shrub with thin, red-brown to purple-red, bare branches. Young shoots are initially hairy and shed later. The leaves are broadly elliptic to semi-kidney-shaped stipules . The petiole is about 5 millimeters long. The leaf blade is 5 to 7 centimeters long, 1.5 to 2 centimeters wide, broadly lanceolate to ovoid or obovate, suddenly pointed, with a narrowed base and a glandular serrated leaf margin. The upper side of the leaf is initially slightly hairy, later balding, weakly shiny, olive-green and nervous. The underside is bare and deep to blue-green. Six to eight pairs of nerves are formed.[1][2]

1 to 3 centimeters long, elliptical catkins are formed as inflorescences on a 1 centimeter long stalk covered with leaves. The bracts are yellowish or brownish, glabrous and long bearded only on the edge. A nectar gland is formed per flower. Male flowers have two almost bare stamens . The ovary of female flowers is long-stalked and densely hairy. The stylus is formed clearly, the scar is divided gabelig. The pale willow flowers from March to April at the same time as the leaves shoot.[1][2]

The number of chromosomes is 2n = 38 or 44.[3]

The natural distribution area extends from Northern Europe (Finland, Norway, Sweden) through Central Europe (Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia) to Romania and the far east of Russia ( Siberia , Primorye region ). [5] In Germany there are stocks in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg , the populations in Bavaria being listed as threatened with extinction and in Baden-Württemberg as endangered.[4] The pale willow grows in bogs and swamp areas on boggy and wet peaty soils in sunny to light-shaded locations. The circulation area becomes the winter hardiness zone5a assigned to mean annual minimum temperatures of −28.8 to −26.0 °C (−20 to −15 °F).[1]

The pale willow thrives in Central Europe in cold winter, frost-rich areas. It is a character species of the Polygono-viviparo-Nestedum sagittalis from the Violion caninae association, but also occurs in the Molinion association or in the Betulo-Salicetum repentis.[3]

The pale willow (Salix starkeana) is a species from the genus of willows (Salix) in the willow family (Salicaceae).[5] It was described in 1806 by Carl Ludwig Willdenow.[5] The generic name Salix comes from Latin and was already used by the Romans for various types of willow.[6] A synonym of the species is Salix livida Wahlenb. Wahlenb.[2]

• Andreas Roloff , Andreas Bärtels: Flora of the woods. Purpose, properties and use. With a winter key from Bernd Schulz. 3rd, corrected edition. Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart (Hohenheim) 2008, ISBN 978-3-8001-5614-6 , pp. 588-589.
• Jost Fitschen: Woody flora . 12th, revised and expanded edition. Quelle & Meyer, Wiebelsheim 2007, ISBN 3-494-01422-1 , p. 761 .
• Helmut Genaust: Etymological dictionary of botanical plant names. 3rd, completely revised and expanded edition. Nikol, Hamburg 2005, ISBN 3-937872-16-7 (reprint from 1996).

• "Salix starkeana". The Plant List. Retrieved 2012-08-12.
• Salix starkeana. In: FloraWeb.de.
• Salix starkeana. In: BiolFlor, the Datenbank biologisch-ökologischer Merkmale der Flora von Deutschland. (Database of Biological-Ecological Features of the Flora of Germany)
• Verbreitung auf der Nordhalbkugel nach: Eric Hultén, Magnus Fries: Atlas of North European vascular plants 1986, ISBN 3-87429-263-0
• Thomas Meyer: Datenblatt mit Bestimmungsschlüssel und Fotos bei Flora-de: Flora von Deutschland (alter Name der Webseite: Blumen in Schwaben)
• Bilder: