Salix purpurea - Purpleosier Willow, Blue Arctic Willow or Basket Willow (Salicaceae) ------Salix pupurea is known for its nearly linear, fine- -stems can be harvested and used in the production of textured, blue-green upperside, silvery-blue baskets (hence one of the common names) underside foliage. Purpleosier Willow is also known Trunk for purplish young stems, wet site or dry site not applicable (except for Salix purpurea 'Pendula', tolerance, bicolored foliage in the breeze, and which is grafted onto a Salix trunk standard) suckering habit that aids in erosion control. USAGE FEATURES Function Form -specimen, group planting, or mass planting shrub, -medium- to large-sized shrub excellent when used near bodies of water, as an -maturing at about 10' tall x 10' informal hedge, as a deciduous screen, on wide, although sometimes larger embankments for erosion control (in dry or wet -upright oval growth habit in soils), at the border for naturalizing, or as a solitary youth, quickly becoming rounded shrub whose fine texture and bicolor effect in the and spreading with age breeze is a great companion plant to the mid-sized or -rapid growth rate taller ornamental grasses Culture Texture -full sun to partial shade -ultra-fine texture in foliage and when bare -performs best in full sun in moist to wet soils of -thick density in foliage and when bare average fertility; very adaptable to poor soils, soils of Assets various pH, dry soils, and drought, but not especially -fine-textured, blue-green, nearly linear foliage tolerant of the combination of heat and high humidity silvery undersides of the leaves create a rippling propagated primarily by rooted stem cuttings bicolored effect in the breeze -many potential diseases (including stem cankers) -rapid growth and establishment and pests affect members of the willow family, but -wet site or dry site tolerant for S. purpurea, the problems are cosmetic in their -takes very well to shearing or heavy rejuvenation damage and relatively minor, and generally overcome pruning by the vigor of the shrub -very cold hardy -moderately available, primarily in container form Liabilities -when this shrub gets too large for its allocated space -may sucker from nearby roots with age, forming a or simply looks untidy, it can be subjected to broad colony (this may be an asset in naturalizing or rejuvenation pruning (taken down to anywhere from screening situations) 4"-2' above the ground, preferably anytime from late -poor autumn color winter to mid-summer), and the new shoots and -not adaptable to the heat and humidity of the suckers will quickly sprout and soon overwhelm the Southern U.S. stumps in a mass of vigorous stems and foliage Habitat Foliage -Zones 3 to 6 -leaves are blue-green, alternate to spiraled, linear to -Native to Europe, North Africa, Central Asia, and oblanceolate, serrulate, Japan with silvery-blue undersides and short SELECTIONS petioles Alternates -leaves are densely -ultra-fine-textured shrubs (Acer palmatum 'Crimson arranged along the very Queen', Rhamnus frangula 'Asplenifolia', etc.) thin stems, and easily -blue-green foliaged companion herbaceous plants flutter and ripple in the (Boltonia asteroides, Festuca glauca, Helictotrichon breezes as the stems sempervirens, Panicum virgatum 'Heavy Metal', etc.) sway in unison -plants for embankment erosion control (Coronilla -summer foliage color varia, Euonymus alatus, Lespedeza thunbergii, holds well into autumn, Hamamelis vernalis, Myrica pensylvanica, Rhus either abscising with glabra, etc.) essentially the same -companion ornamental grasses (or grass-like plants) color, or as a weak yellowish green that is of medium or fine texture for dry to moist sites ornamentally ineffective (Miscanthus sinensis, Pennisetum alopecuroides, Flowers Phalaris arundinaceae var. picta) or moist to wet -dioecious, light green to greenish-yellow, in late sites (Acorus gramineus 'Variegatus', Calamagrostis Apr. and early May, as upright, relatively stiff catkins acutiflora, Carex muskingumensis, Equisetum, that are about 1-2" long, generally parallel to the Glyceria maxima 'Variegata', Panicum virgatum, stems, co-emergent with the foliage, ornamentally various Bamboos, etc.) insignificant, and often unnoticed Cultivars – Variants – Related species Fruits -S. purpurea 'Nana' - compact form, to 6' x 6', the -ornamentally insignificant fruits containing small most common form for landscape situations seeds occur on female plants -S. purpurea 'Streamco' - bred for its intense Twigs suckering and spreading growth that promotes -first season's growth matures as purplish-red stems erosion control along stream banks or steep with shiny red buds, naturalized areas, to 10' x 10' -stems branch repeatedly in the dense canopy