Salix nigra
Habit
The American Black willow or black willow ( Salix nigra) is a small tree from the kind of willow ( Salix) with dark brown bark and dark green leaf tops. The natural range of the species located in North America. It is very rarely used.
Description
The American Black willow is up to 20 meters tall tree with rough, dark brown bark and slender, spreading branches. The twigs are yellowish and initially a bit hairy. The leaves have wide half- heart-shaped stipules and a 3-6 mm long stalk. The leaf blade is 8 to 12 inches long, 0.5 to 2 inches wide, linear - lanceolate to lanceolate, acuminate, wedge base and finely serrated margin. The upper leaf surface is dark green and glabrous, the lower surface is light green and sometimes weak hairy along veins.
As inflorescences 3-8 cm long, cylindrical and pedicled kittens are formed. The bracts are hairy pale yellow and fluffy. Male flowers have three to seven stamens. The ovary of female flowers is clearly stalked and bare, the scar is almost sitting. As fruits 3-5 mm long capsules are formed. The American Black willow flowers with the leaves emerge from April to May
The chromosome number is 2n = 38
Occurrence and habitat requirements
The natural range is in North America, ranging from eastern Canada ( southern New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec) on the east and the center of the United States to Florida and Texas. The American Black willow grows in floodplains and water banks up to 1400 meters altitude on fresh to moist, slightly acidic to alkaline subsoil of sand or gravel in sunny locations. The species is thermophilic and frost hardy. The distribution area is the hardiness zone 4 is associated with mean annual minimum temperatures -34.4 to -28.9 ° C (-30 ° to -20 ° F).
System
The American Black willow ( Salix nigra ) is a species of the genus willow ( Salix) in the family of the willow family ( Salicaceae ). It was described in 1785 by Humphry Marshall for the first time scientifically. The genus name Salix comes from Latin and was already used by the Romans for various species of willows. The specific epithet nigra also comes from Latin and means "black".
Use
The American Black willow is very rarely used, but it is regarded as a medicinal herb.