WILLOW FAMILY (SALICACEAE*) 



14. Sauce, Humboldt willow 



An exotic oniamental tree easily recoornized bj- : 

 ( 1 ) the very narrow columnar crown witli straight 

 axis; (2) nearly erect branches; (3) slender yel- 

 low-green twigs; and (4) the very narrow (lin- 

 ear) , long-pointed, finely saw-toothed leaves. Ap- 

 parently this species does not flower in Puerto 

 Rico. 



A small to medium-sized evergreen tree attain- 

 ing 20-60 feet in height and 8 inches in trunk 

 diameter. The gray bark is rough and furrowed. 

 Inner bark is pinkish and slightly liitter. The 

 twigs are sometimes pinkish tinged. 



The alternate leaves have short slender green- 

 ish or pinkish petioles about i-g inch long. At base 

 there is a pair of broad, short-pointed, toothed, 

 green scales (stipules) %-% inch long, clasping 

 the twig. Leaf blades are 2-5 inches long and 

 %6~% i'lch broad, short-pointed at base, with 

 lateral veins inconspicuous, papery thin, and dull 

 green on both sides. The foliage has a slight but 

 distinctive odor. 



Wiere present, the flowers are male and female 

 on different trees (dioecious) , crowded with woolly 

 scales in narrow clusters (catkins) 11/4-21/4 inches 

 long, terminal on short twigs. Male flowers con- 

 sist of 4—7 stamens above a woolly scale, and fe- 

 male fiowei-s with woolly scale at base have a pistil 

 composed of 1-celled ovai-y and 2 stigmas. Seed 

 capsules nearly %g inch long contain many small 

 seeds with tufts of cottony haire. 



Salix humboldtiana Willd.' 



The sap wood is whitish, and the heart wood dull 

 gray and reddish. The wood is soft, lightweight 

 (specific gravit}' 0.4), and easy to work. It is not 

 durable and is very susceptible to attack by dry- 

 wood termites. The wood is used only for posts 

 and fuel in Puerto Rico. Elsewhere it has been 

 employed for boxes and in cabinetmaking, and 

 the bark has served in medicine. Baskets and 

 wicker furniture are made from the slender flexi- 

 ble branches. 



The colunuiar form is grown as an ornamental, 

 particularly in cemeteries and also in parks and 

 gardens and in living fences. Also in St. Croix. 

 The species is propagated from cuttings. 



Range. — Native from central Mexico south to 

 Chile and Argentina. Planted also in southern 

 Florida, Greater Antilles, and in Guadeloupe, 

 Martinique, St. Vincent, and perhaps other Lesser 

 Antilles. 



Other common n.\mes. — mimbre (Puerto 

 Rico) ; sauce (Spanish) ; sauce Colorado, mimbre 

 (Colombia); pajarobobo (Peru); sauce amargo, 

 sauce chileno (Chile) ; sauce crioUo, sauce Colorado 

 (Argentina) ; sauce criollo, sauce bianco (Uru- 

 guay) ; Humboldt willow, willow (United States, 

 Engish) : saule ( French) ; saule, peuplier (Guade- 

 loupe) ; salgueiro, salso, chorao (Brazil). 



BoT.ANic.\L SYNONYM. — Salix chUejt^w auth., not 

 S. chUensis Molina, a name of uncertain applica- 

 tion. 



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