Sitka Willow
November 9, 2022
By Adam Huggins
Sitka Willow
Salix sitchensis
- Hul’qumi’num Name: sxwelu’elhp
- Description: Deciduous tree growing up to 10 m tall. Flowers are borne in catkins, and leaves are oval with hairy, shiny undersides.
- Habitat: Wet sites, including coastal bluffs, swamps, and dunes.
- Harvest:
- Pair-with: Hardhack, salmonberry, red alder, Pacific ninebark, red-osier dogwood.
- Edibility:
- Fun Fact: This willow can be distinguished from the similar Hooker’s willow by the hairs on the underside of the leaf, which are appressed and shiny as opposed to tangled and wooly.