The genus Salix consists of about 400 species of willow
trees and shrubs, mostly found in the Northern Hemi-
sphere. The greatest diversity is found in China, with about
100 species occurring in North America, 62 of those found
in Canada. Willows are found through Europe, and in the
Andes as far south as Chile.1,2 Natural hybrids and poly-
poids are common. Willows are easily propagated from
shoots, and had been cultivated in ancient Greece and
Rome. Useful in reclamation and erosion control, willows
thrive under moist conditions and produce an extensive
root system. Bark extracts contain salicin, similar to ace-
tylsalicylic acid, useful for pain relief and as a substitute for
quinine.1 Pussy willow, Salix discolor, is a North American
native prevalent across Canada, from British Columbia,
Northwest Territory and the Yukon to Newfoundland. It is
found throughout the northern Midwestern and eastern
states, south to Tennessee, and in scattered fashion across
the Great Plains.1– 4 Immature catkins are covered with
silky hairs or “pussy fur,” and twigs are commonly used in
spring floral arrangements.1,5
S. discolor is a shrub or small tree, to 3 m high with
multiple trunks and upright branches. Bark is grayish-
brown with red tinges and shallow furrows.1,5 Leaves are
bright green above and whitish beneath, oblong, 3–10-cm
long, tip pointed or blunt, with irregular serration, espe-
cially above the middle. Catkins fully developed before
leaves. Pollen catkins 2– 4 cm, and seed catkins 2– 6-cm
long. Flowering occurs from February through May.2 Wil-
lows are amphiphilous, with both insect and wind vectors
being important.6,7 While Wodehouse felt willows were
generally of secondary importance in hay fever, he stated
that the pollen was frequently caught in abundance on
samplers, and could become an important factor.8,9 Willow
pollen is captured in mid-Europe in significant quantities
between March and May.10 Lewis and colleagues demon-
strated more intense skin test reactivity to Salix than to
Populus, although sensitization to the latter was twice as
common.6
The family Salicaceae contains 3 genera and is mono-
phyletic, classified within the order Malpighales, and
closely related to the order Fagales, which contains several
wind-pollinated families.7 There is strong cross-reactivity
between Salix and Populus based on skin testing and P-K
neutralization.6,11 There is also moderate cross-reactivity
between Salicaceae and Fagales based on passive hemag-
glutination and P-K neutralization.11
S. discolor pollen grains are prolate and tricolporate,
with a convex triangular polar view, 16 –22 ⫻ 27–30 ␮m in
diameter. Furrows are long, 12–19 ⫻ 2– 4 ␮m, open and
intruding. Sexine is tectate and bacculate, 1.2 ␮m wide.
The intine is 0.8 ␮m, thickening to 1.2 ␮m at the colpi.
Sculpturing is reticulate with verrucate particles within the
A4
Pussy Willow
Cover & Table of Contents Photography: Richard W. Weber, MD;
Pollen Grain: Carlyne Cool, MD
luminae, which are 0.3–1.0 ␮m, smaller toward the fur-
rows. Muri are thicker at the base and acute at the top.4,9
RICHARD W. WEBER, MD
REFERENCES
1. Farrar JL. Trees of the Northern United States and Canada.
Ames, IA, Iowa State University Press, 1995:312–334.
2. Petrides GA. A Field Guide to Eastern Trees: Eastern United
States and Canada, Including the Midwest. New York, Houghton
Mifflin, 1998:98 –99,329 –338.
3. Brockman CF. Trees of North America. New York, Golden Press,
1968:76 – 83.
4. Bassett IJ, Crompton CW, Parmalee JA. An Atlas of Airborne
Pollen Grains and Common Fungus Spores of Canada. Hull,
Quebec, Printing and Publishing, Supply and Services Canada,
1978:242–234.
5. Tekeila S. Trees of Wisconsin Field Guide. Cambridge, MN,
Adventure Publications, Inc., 2002:80 – 81.
6. Lewis WH, Vinay P, Zenger VE. Airborne and Allergenic Pollen
of North America. Baltimore, MD, Johns Hopkins University
Press, 1983:85– 89,208.
7. Judd WS, Campbell CS, Kellogg EA, Stevens PF. Plant
Systematics: A Phylogenetic Approach. Sunderland, MA, Sinauer
Associates, 1999:268 –282.
8. Wodehouse RP. Hayfever Plants. New York, Hafner Publishing
Co., 1971:72–78.
9. Wodehouse RP. Pollen Grains. New York, McGraw-Hill, 1935:
347–354.
10. Horak F, Jäger S. Die Erreger des Heufiebers: Medizinisch-
botanische Dokumentation der Pollenallergie in Mitteleuropa.
Munich, Urban & Schwarzenberg, 1979:33–34.
11. Weber RW: Cross-reactivity of plant and animal allergens. Clin
Rev Allergy Immunol. 2001;21:153–202.
Request for reprints should be addressed to:
Richard W. Weber, MD
National Jewish Medical & Research Center
1400 Jackson Street Room J326
Denver, CO 80206