''Salix mucronata'' (commonly called the Cape silver willow or Safsaf willow) is a tall, graceful, Semi-

Deciduous In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

willow tree. It grows along riverbanks in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, and is used for a wide range of traditional medicines.
The Cape willow is

dioecious Dioecy ( ; ; adj. dioecious, ) is a characteristic of certain species that have distinct unisexual individuals, each producing either male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproduction is ...

(separate male and female trees).

Taxonomy

This variable-looking species was previously subdivided into a number of different species. These have now all been downgraded to just being

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

of ''Salix mucronata''. These subspecies include: * ''S. m. hirsuta'' (silver willow) * ''S. m. mucronata'' (Safsaf willow) * ''S. m. woodii'' (flute willow) * ''S. m. capensis'' (small-leaved willow)

References

Plants used in traditional African medicine Trees of South Africa Trees of Mediterranean climate Flora of South Africa Afromontane flora mucronata {{Salicaceae-stub