Salix acutifolia 'Pendulifolia'

This selection originated in the nursery of Späth Baumschulen, Berlin, Germany, in 1939. It produces a vertical, very loosely growing shrub that grows to become a small, decorative tree. The thin, shiny reddish brown twigs grow broadly out and hang down. Ultimately, the tree cana grow to 20ft tall aand as wide as it is high. Trunk and twigs take on a bluish white wax coating as they get older. Leaves are remarkably long and narrow and the top tapers to a long point. The leaves are bluish green on the underside. A key difference with the species is that the leaves of 'Pendulifolia' hang down sharply. The tree has a decorative manner of growth with slender silver, male catkins that turn bright yellow at maturity are 4–6 cm. Catkins appear before leaves develop, sometimes as early as late January, but usually from mid-February to late March. Grows in both acidic and calcareous soil. A tree that generally has a life expectancy of up to about 20 years.

(Text and photos from Van Den Berk Nursery in England, a subsidiary of a nursery in the Netherlands.)