Skip to main content
Logo for the Irish Tree Explorers Network

Irish Tree Explorers NetworkLíonra Taiscéalaí Crainn na hÉireann
  1. Home
  2. Research Centres, Institutes and Projects
  3. Irish Tree Explorers Network
  4. Trees
  5. A-Z of Trees
  6. Salix pentandra

Salix pentandra

Common names: Bay willow, laurel willow 

Irish name: Saileach labhrais 

Latin name: Salix pentandra 

Family: Salicaceae 

Origin: Native 

Tree type: Deciduous broadleaf tree

How it looks

Tree shape, bark, and twigs  

In favoured conditions, bay willow can grow into a good-sized tree but is more commonly found as a small tree between 5-7m in height. The bark on the trunk or large branches is grey and lightly fissured. On mature trees, the branches spread, forming a rounded crown. The twigs are brown or reddish and are shiny, almost as if they have been varnished, and hairless. 

Buds 

It produces small and narrow eggs-shaped buds, which are green to dark brown, glossy, and can be sticky. 

Leaves 

Bay willow was named because its leaves resemble bay leaves, being slightly fragrant when crushed and stiff and leathery to the touch. They grow alternately along the twigs, between 5-12 cm long and 2-5 cm wide.  They are narrow, oval-shaped, tapering at each end with a rounded base and short tapering tip, with finely serrated margins. The upper leaf is a medium to dark green, very shiny, and hairless. The leaf underside is a paler green, slightly shiny, and hairless. The leaf stem is generally less than 1cm long and has one or more pairs of small glands near the leaf's base. Young leaves usually have small leaves at the base of the stem (stipules), but these tend to fall off later in the year. 

Flowers 

Like most willows, bay willow is dioecious, meaning its male and female flowers are produced on separate plants. The flowers are in the form of catkins and bloom for 1 to 2 weeks in late spring after the leaves develop. The male catkins are pale yellow and 2-5 cm long, and the female catkins are greenish, have flask-shaped ovaries, and are 1.5-3 cm long.  

Fruits 

After pollination by insects, the female catkins develop seed capsules. When ripe in mid-summer, the catkins will turn brown and split open to release tiny seeds with white cottony tufts into the wind. The seeds only remain viable for a short period, so to germinate, they must reach an area of moist soil within 1-2 weeks. This species of willow does not sucker for the roots but can be propagated by planting cuttings of small branches during the spring. 

 

 

Where to find it

Bay willow is native to Northern Ireland and a rare native in the Republic. However, it has been planted widely in many areas far outside its natural range in the Republic of Ireland due to its attractive foliage and catkins. The Bay willow is also widely distributed in northern and central Europe but is absent from most of southern Europe and the Mediterranean region. It favours damp soils beside streams, rivers, in wet woodland, and boggy ground. 

Cultural Importance

History | Myth, Legend and Folklore | Arts and Literature 

History 

Burnt material unearthed at Mesolithic (c. 8000-4000 BC) and Neolithic (c. 4000-2500 BC) period archaeological sites in Co. Tyrone in 2006-2007, demonstrates that early communities on the Island of Ireland were burning willow for various reasons as far back as 8400 years ago. Additional evidence from archaeological sites in the Irish midlands and Wicklow, indicate that willow continued to be used for fuel for different purposes, such as cooking and industry, from the Neolithic through to the Medieval period (c. 400-1600 AD).  

Willow was also used to make a type of rope or binding in antiquity. Hammer stones excavated at the Bronze Age (c. 2500-800 BC) mining site at Mount Gabriel, Co. Cork were found bound to a wooden handle with willow withies or rods. In the ancient Irish texts from the early Medieval period, there are also numerous references to the use of willow withies for tying up livestock.   

Along with other wood species, willow was used in Ireland during the Bronze Age and Iron Age (c. 800 BC – 400 AD) in the construction of wooden trackways that allowed people to traverse bogs and access their resources. Similarly, finds from archaeological excavations at Islandbridge in Dublin show that willow was used to make post and wattle fences during the late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age period. This type of wickerwork was also used in the construction of houses, baskets, scallops for thatching and other domestic items; practices which continued into later periods. It is likely that Willow, amongst other trees, was carefully managed and coppiced specifically for these everyday needs, especially from the Medieval period onwards. Willow continued to be used in Ireland for basketry and thatching right into the 20th century. 

Willow was also valuable for making objects. For instance, an Iron Age mallet made of willow was found deposited within a bog trackway during archaeological excavation at Edercloon, Co. Longford. It is possible that the mallet had originally been used to construct the trackway. In addition, Methers – Irish medieval ceremonial drinking vessels on which the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) MacCarthy Cup is styled – were sometimes carved from willow. As were harps – the 14th century Brian Boru Harp, now housed in Trinity College Dublin, is made from willow. 

Medicinally, different parts of the willow were traditionally used to relieve pain associated with a headache or toothache and general aches and pains. In medieval times, the bark was chewed to release the salicin. Additionally, the bark was boiled in water to create a medicinal syrup that was taken to relieve digestive complaints, reduce joint inflammation, and act as a gargle for sore throats. 

In view of its usefulness in so many areas of life, it is unsurprising that in early medieval Ireland willow was deemed valuable. As a result, it featured in the early Irish tree lists as one of the ‘Commoners of the Wood’. If a person unlawfully damaged or felled one of these trees, they would have to pay a hefty fine in compensation amounting to as much as two milch cows and a three-year-old heifer. The willow was of such significance during this period that it was used to represent the character for the letter ‘S’ in the early Irish Ogham alphabet, taking the following form: 

Furthermore, it was so widespread throughout the country that willow features in many Irish placenames. Examples include Clonsilla or Cluain Saileach in Co. Dublin which translates as meadow of the willow’ and Parknasilla or Páirc na Saileach in Co. Kerry, which means ‘the field of the willows’ Co. Kerry. 

Willow has been similarly valued by different cultures across the world for various purposes, including for its medicinal uses and in the construction of different types of wickerwork, such as basketry and matting. Willow baskets have been unearthed during archaeological excavations at, for instance, Mesolithic (c. 7500 BC) sites in the Iberian Peninsula and Roman sites in the UK (c. AD 43 to AD 410), As in Ireland, Willow bark has also been used medicinally throughout the world for thousands of years to treat various ailments. For example, the Assyrians, Egyptians, and Greeks used it to treat pain, inflammation and fever. 

Myth, Legend and Folklore 

Willow is traditionally associated with themes of life, fertility, good luck and protection, and often connected with water and milk. In Irish folklore, it was seen as good luck to take a rod of willow, or as it was better known, a ‘sally rod’, with oneself on a journey. Likewise, wrapping a sally rod around a milk churn was believed to guarantee good butter or encourage the butter to form. Additionally, it was believed that willow charcoal could cause hair to regrow on an animal where it had previously gone bald. On account of its flexible nature, there was also the belief that hanging willow over one’s door would cause the inhabitants of the house to dance uncontrollably. 

In Scotland, willow rods were used as ‘Bride’s Wands’ at the time of the Bride’s Eve festival in February. In different parts of England, hanging willow over one’s door was thought variously to bring good luck to the house, and to protect against witches. 

Willow also features in the Irish myths. For example one story tells of how the King of Leinster, Labhraidh Loingseach’s ears were long like those of a horse, a fact that he kept hidden except from his barber who was sworn to secrecy. Developing an illness as a result of holding in this secret, the young barber whispered the secret to a local willow tree in order to get it off his chest. However, the tree is later cut down to make a harp that is played in the royal court, whereupon the harp sings only the words ‘Labhraidh Loingseach has horse’s ears!’, thus spreading the secret throughout the kingdom. 

Willow has multiple associations with milk and water in folklore and legend. Similarly, it is associated with the river Goddess Bóinn who was described in the myths as a great cow whose milk flowed in the river that we know today as the River Boyne. 

Arts and Literature 

The willow features frequently in literature. In early Irish poetry, the poet Suibhne Geilt refers to the tree as the ‘bright cheerful sallow’. It also features in a Medieval Irish Bardic poem in which Iubhdán, King of the Leprechauns, refer to it as a noble tree. The willow often crops up in later works such as the plays of William Shakespeare. More recently, it is cast in a negative light in the Harry Potter books in the form of the malevolent ‘Whomping Willow’. 

Perhaps one of the most famous homages to the willow in the arts is the William Morris pattern ‘Willow Boughs’, which he designed in 1887 and continues to adorn wallpaper and fabrics all over the world. 

Willow also features in songs, such as the Medieval folk song and carol, the ‘Bitter Withy’. 

Value to Wildlife

The bay willow is an important tree in wet habitats. Underground, they form relationships with fungi, where the roots of the fungi surround the plant’s roots, and a mutually beneficial exchange of nutrients takes place. The bay willow's foliage provides nesting sites for many bird species, and the leaves serve as a food source for several moth caterpillars. The abundance of caterpillars attracts feeding birds, and the stems and branches offer a haven for various mosses and lichens. Additionally, the catkins of the bay willow produce nectar and pollen, which makes it an important source of food for bees and other insects in the early season. 

Threats

Like other willows, bay willow is susceptible to watermark disease caused by the bacteria Brenneria salicis. Although this bacterium has not yet been recorded in Ireland, it has reached parts of the UK and has the potential to make its way over. The bacteria cause branches to die back and red leaves to develop in other parts of the crown, eventually killing the tree if left untreated. 

Uses

Willows have been valuable to humans for their medicinal purposes. The painkiller aspirin is derived from salicin, a compound found in the bark of all Salix species. They are popular for fencing, hedging and traditional crafts such as basket making. They are also valuable for ecological restoration in that they stabilise riverbanks and prevent soil erosion, protect against flooding and rehabilitate contaminated land by processing contaminants such as heavy metals.   

References

 

Irish Tree Explorers Network

Líonra Taiscéalaí Crainn na hÉireann

  • Dr Eoin Lettice, Senior Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Plant Science - E.Lettice@ucc.ie
  • Dr Barbara Doyle Prestwich, Head of Plant Science & Vice Head of School Senior Lecturer/Assoc.Prof. - b.doyle@ucc.ie
Choose areas of the website to search
Top