Salix serissima – Autumn Willow

A northern species, occurring no further south than southern Pennsylvania. It occurs in Ulster County mostly in rich fens and calcareous swamps of high pH, habitat that is rare in the county so this is not a common species in our area. It has shiny foliage, much like Shining Willow (S. lucida), and has occasionally been listed as a variety of that species. Autumn Willow is one of the latest willows to disperse its seeds, often doing so as late as October, hence the common name.