Range: http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=salix Main data base on usda, all of North America.
Appearance and Habitat: Woods, scrub and hedges, usually on basic soils, to 840 meters in Europe, including Britain, from Norway south and east to Spain, temperate Aisa and Syria. A deciduous tree growing to 10 m (32ft) by 8 m (26ft) at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone 5 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from Mar to April, and the seeds ripen in May.
Edible Uses: Inner bark – raw or cooked. It can be dried, ground into a powder and then added to cereal flour for use in making bread etc. A very bitter flavour, it is a famine food that is only used when all else fails. Young shoots – raw or cooked. They are not very palatable. The source of an edible manna No further details.
Medicinal Uses : The fresh bark of all members of this genus contains salicin, which probably decomposes into salicylic acid (closely related to aspirin) in the human body. This is used as an anodyne and febrifuge. A decoction of the leaves is used in the treatment of fevers. A distilled water from the flowers is aphrodisiac, cordial and stimulant. It is used externally in the treatment of headaches and ophthalmia. The ashes of the wood are useful in the treatment of haemoptysis. The stems and the leaves are astringent. A gum and the juice of the trees are used to increase visual powers.
Appearance and Habitat: A perrenial native shrub that blooms June to September. Chiefly in the Olympic and Cascade mountains of Washington; Alaska and Yukon south to Oregon, occasionally east to idaho and Montana.
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