Barratt's Willow

About Barratt's Willow in Alberta

Barratt's willow is a native Alberta mountain shrub of cool wet alpine and upper-subalpine settings, not a prairie or urban willow. For Ancient Roots Alberta, it matters through intact high-elevation shrublands, seepage zones, wet meadows, and other Rocky Mountain landscapes where persistent native willow communities reflect long continuity and high habitat integrity.

Identification: Leaves are narrowly to broadly elliptic, oblanceolate, or obovate, usually about 35-95 mm long. Margins are flat and entire rather than toothed. The lower surface is not glaucous and is moderately to very densely long-silky tomentose, often with wavy hairs, while the upper surface is slightly glossy and may be sparsely hairy to nearly glabrous. Young leaves can be so densely silky that much of the green is obscured.

Alberta range and habitat: Barratt's willow is native in Alberta and should be treated primarily as a wild Rocky Mountain shrub. Alberta is one of the core jurisdictions for the species rather than a fringe outpost.