Editing Salix caprea

{{Short description|Species of tree}}
{{Redirect|Goat Willow|the song by Hawkwind|Hall of the Mountain Grill}}
{{Speciesbox
|status = LC
|status_system = IUCN3.1
|status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{Cite iucn |title=''Salix caprea'' |author=Barstow, M., Matchutadze, I. & Harvey-Brown, Y. |name-list-style=amp |page= e.T19620273A19621176 |date=2018 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T19620273A19621176.en |access-date=11 April 2024}}</ref>
|image = Waterwilg (DSC 2539).jpg
|image_caption = Goat willow male catkins
|genus = Salix
|species = caprea
|authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|L.]]
|range_map = Salix caprea range.svg
|range_map_caption = Distribution map
|synonyms_ref=<ref>{{cite web |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:303599-2 |title=''Salix caprea L.'' |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=2017 |website=Plants of the World Online |publisher=Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=7 September 2020 }}</ref>
|synonyms={{collapsible list|
*''Capraea vulgaris'' <small>Opiz</small>
*''Nectopix caprea'' <small>(L.) Raf.</small>
*''Salix aurigerana'' <small>Lapeyr.</small>
*''Salix bakko'' <small>Kimura</small>
*''Salix caprea'' f. ''elongata'' <small>(Nakai) Kitag.</small>
*''Salix caprea'' var. ''ishidoyana'' <small>(Nakai) M.Kim</small>
*''Salix caprea'' var. ''lanatifolia'' <small>Björnstr.</small>
*''Salix caprea'' var. ''pendula'' <small>T.Lang</small>
*''Salix coaetanea'' <small>(Hartm.) Flod.</small>
*''Salix hallaisanensis'' <small>H.Lév.</small>
*''Salix hultenii'' <small>Flod.</small>
*''Salix ishidoyana'' <small>Nakai</small>
*''Salix lanata'' <small>Vill.</small>
*''Salix sphacelata'' <small>Sm.</small>
*''Salix tomentosa'' var. ''androgyna'' <small>Ser.</small>
*''Salix tomentosa'' var. ''macrophylla'' <small>Ser.</small>
*''Salix tomentosa'' var. ''rotundifolia'' <small>Ser.</small>
*''Salix tomentosa'' var. ''tenuifolia'' <small>Ser.</small>
*''Salix tomentosa'' var. ''ternata'' <small>Ser.</small>
  }}
}}

'''''Salix caprea''''', known as '''goat willow''', '''[[pussy willow]]''' or '''great sallow''', is a common species of [[willow]] native to [[Europe]] and western and central [[Asia]].<ref name=meikle>Meikle, R. D. (1984). ''Willows and Poplars of Great Britain and Ireland''. BSBI Handbook 4. {{ISBN|0-901158-07-0}}.</ref>

==Description==
It is a [[deciduous]] [[shrub]] or small [[tree]], reaching a height of {{convert|8|-|10|m|ft|abbr=on}}, rarely to 13 m.

The [[leaf|leaves]] are 3–12&nbsp;cm long and from 2–8&nbsp;cm wide, broader than most other willows.

The [[flower]]s are soft silky, and silvery 3-7-cm-long [[catkin]]s are produced in early spring before the new leaves appear; the male and female catkins are on different plants ([[plant sexuality|dioecious]]). The male catkins mature yellow at [[pollen]] release, the female catkins mature pale green.

{{Multiple image
| align = left
| total_width = 300
| image1 = Salix caprea female TK 3.jpg
| alt1 = female and male catkins of ''Salix caprea''
| caption1 = Female catkins
| image2 = Salix caprea male TK 4.jpg
| caption2 = Male catkins
}}

The [[fruit]] is a small [[capsule (fruit)|capsule]] 5–10&nbsp;mm long containing numerous minute [[seed]]s embedded in fine, cottony hairs. The seeds are very small (about 0.2&nbsp;mm) with the fine hairs aiding dispersal; they require bare [[soil]] to [[Germination|germinate]].<ref name=meikle/><ref name=rushforth>Rushforth, K. (1999). ''Trees of Britain and Europe''. Collins. {{ISBN|0-00-220013-9}}.</ref>

The two [[variety (biology)|varieties]] are:<ref name=meikle/>
*''S. c.'' var. ''caprea'' - lowland regions throughout the range, leaves thinly hairy above, densely hairy below, 5–12&nbsp;cm long,  stipules persistent until autumn
*''S. c.'' var. ''sphacelata'' (Sm.) Wahlenb. (syn. ''S. caprea'' var. ''coaetanea'' Hartm.; ''S. coaetanea'' (Hartm.) Floderus) - high altitudes in the mountains of central and northern Europe (Alps, Carpathians, Scotland, Scandinavia), leaves densely silky-hairy on both sides, 3–7&nbsp;cm long, stipules early deciduous. In western Norway there are trees of S. c. var 'Sphacelata' that are 18–20 meters tall and have mostly single trunks.

==Name==
The Latin [[binomial nomenclature|specific epithet]] ''caprea'' means "goat".<ref name=RHSLG>{{cite book | last=Harrison |first=Lorraine | title=RHS Latin for Gardeners | year=2012 |publisher=Mitchell Beazley | location=United Kingdom | isbn=978-1845337315 }}</ref> This, and the common name goat willow, probably derive from the first known illustration of the species in [[Hieronymus Bock]]'s 1546 ''[[Herbal]]'', where the plant is shown being browsed by a goat. The species was historically also widely used as a browse for goats, to which Bock's illustration may refer.<ref name=bean>Bean, W. J. (1980). ''Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles''. {{ISBN|0-7195-2428-8}}.</ref>

==Ecology==
''S. caprea'' occurs both in wet/damp environments, such as riverbanks and lake shores, and in drier sites, wherever bare soil becomes available due to ground disturbance.<ref name=meikle/>

[[Hybrid (biology)|Hybrids]] with several other willow species are common, notably with ''[[Salix cinerea]]'' (''S. × reichardtii''), ''[[Salix aurita]]'' (''S. × multinervis''), ''[[Salix viminalis]]'' (''S. × smithiana''), and ''[[Salix purpurea]]'' (''S. × sordida''). Populations of ''S. caprea'' often show [[hybrid introgression]].<ref name=meikle/><ref name=rushforth/>

Unlike almost all other willows, pure specimens do not take root readily from cuttings; if a willow resembling the species does root easily, it is probably a hybrid with another species of willow.<ref name=rushforth/>

The leaves are used as a food resource by several species of Lepidoptera, and are also commonly eaten by browsing [[mammal]]s. Willows are very susceptible to gall inducers, and the midge ''[[Rhabdophaga rosaria]]'' forms the camellia gall on ''S. caprea''.<ref>[http://www.joensuu.fi/biologia/nyman/IOWgallinducers.htm Gall Inducers] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611161957/http://www.joensuu.fi/biologia/nyman/IOWgallinducers.htm |date=June 11, 2011 }}</ref>

==Cultivation and uses==
{{See also|Pussy willow}}
[[File:Willow whistle.jpg|thumb|170px|A willow flute]]
A small number of [[cultivar]]s have been selected for garden use. The most common is ''S. caprea'' 'Kilmarnock', discovered by [[James Smith (Scottish botanist)|James Smith]], with stiffly pendulous shoots forming a mop-head; it is a male clone. A similar female clone is ''S. caprea'' 'Weeping Sally'. As they do not form a leader, they are [[grafting|grafted]] on erect stems of other willows; the height of these cultivars is determined by the height at which the graft is made.<ref name=rushforth/> Plants can also be grown from greenwood cuttings, which make attractive creeping mounds. Hardwood cuttings are often difficult to root.

Both [[tannin]] and [[salicin]] can be extracted from goat willow bark. The tree is not considered a good source of [[timber]], as its wood is both brittle and known to crackle violently if burned.

As with the closely related ''[[Salix discolor]]'' (American pussy willow), it is also often grown for cut flowers. See [[Pussy willow]] for further cultural information, which applies to both species.

In [[North Europe]] it has been fairly common to make [[willow flute]]s from goat willow cuttings.

In [[Germany]], [[Hungary]], north of [[Slovakia]], [[Poland]],  [[Ukraine]] and many parts of [[Finland]], the just-opened catkins are used like the olive branches on [[Palm Sunday]].

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikispecies}}
* [http://www.euforgen.org/species/salix-caprea/ ''Salix caprea''] - genetic conservation units [[European Forest Genetic Resources Programme]] (EUFORGEN)
* {{PFAF|Salix caprea}}
* {{PFAF|Salix bakko}}

{{Tannin source}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q159565}}

[[Category:Salix|caprea]]
[[Category:Flora of Ukraine]]
[[Category:Plants described in 1753]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]