Salix pentandra

This is a shrub or small tree that can be up to 7-8 m tall on the Iberian Peninsula, although in other regions in its range it can reach as much as 17 m in height. Its branches are somewhat aromatic. They are reddish-chestnut or brown in colour, and hairless and shiny, as if varnished. The leaves are simple, deciduous, alternate, somewhat leathery, oblong-elliptical or widely lanceolate. They are 5-10 cm long and 2-4 cm wide. The margin is finely serrated and glandulous. The upper side is a shiny green while the underside is paler, but not matt. The flowers are borne on long filaments known as catkins. The male flowers usually have 5 stamens, but may have between 4 and 10. The fruits are capsules that open when ripe to release seeds wrapped in a cottony material that helps them be dispersed by the wind.