Dusky Willow

About Dusky Willow in Alberta

Dusky willow is a native Alberta willow best understood as a western riparian shrub of foothill, mountain-adjacent, and cordilleran-facing landscapes rather than as a broad province-wide lowland species. It belongs to the narrow-leaved Longifoliae willow group and occurs in riverbanks, moist to wet riparian corridors, cobble or silt bars, and some subalpine meadow settings. For Ancient Roots Alberta, it matters primarily through intact western stream corridors and native alluvial shrub systems rather than through ornamental or urban planting.

Identification: Leaves are pointed and may be oval, lanceolate, or linear-lanceolate, sometimes exceeding 13 cm long. Margins may be smooth or spine-toothed. The narrow-leaved morphology places the species close to sandbar- and exigua-group willows.

Alberta range and habitat: Dusky willow is native in Alberta, but current evidence supports a mainly western and mountain-adjacent provincial expression rather than broad lowland occurrence. It is most plausibly associated with southwestern or cordilleran-facing riparian systems.