Illustration
Common Pussy Willow
Salix discolor
Also called pussy willow, american pussy willow and glaucous willow
Also comes in white.
Common Pussy Willow blooms from March through April.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Common Pussy Willow
Plant it in full sun. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 2–7. Expect it to reach about 16 ft tall and 11 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 15 years (a house reading).
Pets
- Not yet checked for pets.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
No toxicity note is on file for Common Pussy Willow. That is not a clearance: check its safety for people and pets before planting.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Common Pussy Willow
Plant Common Pussy Willow in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 5, the middle of its hardy zones 2 to 7, spring means April to June and fall means August or September. Once settled, it blooms from March to April.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 5, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 5 in April. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Common Pussy Willow get?
16 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult11 ftwideSee Common Pussy Willow in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Common Pussy Willow
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Give Common Pussy Willow about 11 ft of clear ground in every direction, measured from its center. It is one plant with room around it, not a row, and a raised bed is too small for it.
Add Common Pussy Willow to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Common Pussy Willow's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 9 published sources on October 18, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- abnativeplants.comAmerican Beauties Native Plantsheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- Prairie Moon Nurseryheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- Missouri Botanical Gardenheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- NC State Extensionheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- The Morton Arboretumheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- Plant Addictsheight, spread, hardiness zones, bloom months and color and trait tags
- etd.ohiolink.eduThe Ohio State University, Yulia A. Kuzovkina-Eischen (2003)height, spread, hardiness zones and bloom months and color
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Societyheight, bloom months and color and trait tags
- Iowa State University Extensionand Outreachbloom months and color
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
Where it grows wild
Native to 28 states and 12 provinces
United States: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming and 16 more
Canada: Alberta, British Columbia, Labrador, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan
Recorded growing wild in 494 counties.
Range data from the World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 4.0, adapted) and USDA PLANTS. How the native range is credited.
Explore similar plants
You might also like
Design a garden with this
Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.