| Salix melanopsis | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Malpighiales |
| Family: | Salicaceae |
| Genus: | Salix |
| Species: | S. melanopsis |
| Binomial name | |
| Salix melanopsis Nutt. |
|
Salix melanopsis is a species of willow known by the common name dusky willow. It is native to western North America from British Columbia and Alberta to California and Colorado, where it grows in many types of moist and wet habitat, such as riverbanks and subalpine mountain meadows, on rocky and silty substrates.
It is a shrub up to 4 meters tall, sometimes sprouting abundantly from its stem to form colonial thickets of clones. The pointed, oval, lance-shaped, or linear leaves may grow over 13 centimeters long and have smooth or spine-toothed edges. The inflorescence is a catkin of flowers up to 5 or 6 centimeters long.