Salix gracilistyla 'Mount Aso'

Mount Aso Willow Salicaceae

A Japanese selection of the pink pussy willow, distinguished by its wonderfully plush, rosy-pink male catkins, which appear on the bare branches in late winter and early spring. As they expand they become silvery, eventually opening to reveal the yellow stamens. The foliage is rather handsome too: grey-green to slightly bluish above, with a softly silky, glaucous underside. A useful willow for damp ground and, with regular hard pruning, an excellent producer of flowering stems for cutting.

‘Mount Aso’ was selected in Japan by Dr Tsuneshige Rokujo, specifically for its pink catkins and bluish foliage, and was named for Mount Aso, the great volcanic massif of Kyushu. It is a male cultivar. 

The species, Salix gracilistyla Miq., is native to eastern Asia, principally Japan, Korea and eastern China, occurring in damp habitats and along watercourses. ‘Mount Aso’ should not, however, be described as a wild plant from Mount Aso itself: it is a cultivated selection whose precise wild provenance is not recorded. 

Nomenclature: ‘Mount Aso’ is correctly treated by the RHS as Salix gracilistyla ‘Mount Aso’. It has also been distributed under the synonym Salix chaenomeloides ‘Mount Aso’; this reflects the long-standing taxonomic confusion surrounding the S. gracilistyla group rather than evidence that the cultivar originated from S. chaenomeloides. 

• Hardiness: H5, -15 to -10°C
• Height: 2.5–4 m
• Spread: 2.5–4 m
• Flowers: February–April