About Salix interior Rowlee
Salix interior Rowlee is a deciduous shrub that normally grows 4 to 7 metres (13 to 23 ft) tall, and may exceptionally reach 7.6 m (25 ft) in height. It spreads via basal shoots to form dense clonal colonies. Its leaves are narrow lanceolate, measuring 4 to 12 centimetres (1+1⁄2 to 4+3⁄4 in) long and 2 to 10 millimetres (1⁄16 to 3⁄8 in) broad. Leaf color ranges from green to grayish, and silky white hairs are present at least when the leaves are young. Leaf margins are either entire, or have a small number of irregular, widely spaced small teeth. Flowers grow in catkins that form in late spring, after leaves have emerged. This species is dioecious: staminate (male) and pistillate (female) catkins grow on separate individual plants. Male catkins can grow up to 10 cm (4 in) long, while female catkins reach a maximum length of 8 cm (3 in). The fruit is a cluster of capsules, each of which holds numerous minute seeds embedded in shiny white silk. In ecology, the male flowers of Salix interior Rowlee produce pollen that is collected by bees. It acts as a larval host plant for the California hairstreak, Lorquin's admiral, mourning cloak, sylvan hairstreak, tiger swallowtail, and viceroy. In cultivation, Salix exigua is grown as an ornamental tree, and in the United Kingdom it has received the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. This willow has a wide range of uses for Native Americans. Its branches are used as flexible poles and building materials, smaller twigs are used to craft baskets, and its bark is processed into cord and string. Its bark and leaves also have several medicinal uses: the Zuni people prepare an infusion of the bark to treat coughs and sore throats. Livestock browse the plant's foliage.
