Dwarf Willow

Salix herbacea (Dwarf Willow, Least Willow or Snowbed Willow) is a species of tiny creeping willow (family Salicaceae).

Leaves and seed capsules

Leaves and seed capsules

It is adapted to survive in harsh Arctic and sub-Arctic environments, and has a wide distribution on both sides of the North Atlantic, in Arctic northwest Asia, northern Europe, Greenland, and eastern Canada, and further south on high mountains, south to the Pyrenees, the Alps and the Rila in Europe, and the northern Appalachian Mountains in New York, United States. It grows in tundra and rocky moorland, usually at over 1,500 m altitude in the south of its range but down to sea level in the Arctic.

It is one of the smallest woody plants in the world. It typically grows to only 1-6 cm in height and has round, shiny green leaves 1-2 cm long and broad. Like the rest of the willows, Dwarf Willow is dioecious, with male and female catkins on separate plants. As a result the plant's appearance varies; the female catkins are red-coloured, while the male catkins are yellow-coloured.