This plant is a type of willow tree that has stems that are bright green in the winter time, even when it has lost its leaves. The stems can be used to make baskets too!

Green dicks purple osier willow can grow to about sixteen feet tall and about eight feet wide but this tree is usually coppiced (cut back very severely in late winter) so that it stays at about six to eight feet tall. When coppiced, the stems stay quite thin and pliable and are suitable for fine basketry. After the leaves fall in the winter the stems turn bright green providing winter interest against snow. Planting with red osier dogwoods and blue spruces would enhance this effect. This willow is also suitable for using as a living fence, where canes are planted a foot apart but at right angles to their neighbor, so the canes can be woven. The resulting living hedge can be used to block livestock, especially as the leaves and shoot are unpleasant to deer and rabbits.

Members of the genus Salix are commonly known as willows. These woody plants range in size from the imposing weeping willow tree to small shrubs. While not fussy about soil quality, they generally require moderate to wet soil moisture. In the wild, willows are commonly found near streams, rivers and ponds. In cultivation, willows are often used to control erosion in such areas. They are easily propagated from cuttings; willows root and grow quickly.

Of the estimated 350 species in the genus Salix, most are native to the cooler, temperate and sub-polar regions of Asia, Europe and North America. Cross species hybridization occurs both naturally and through human intervention, which can make taxonomic distinctions challenging. The Chicago Botanic Garden's collection contains almost 150 varieties among its more than 8,000 willows.