Salix babylonica but beyond China, it has not generally been as successfully cultivated as some of its hybrid derivatives, being sensitive to late-spring frosts. In the more humid climates of much of Europe and eastern North America, it is susceptible to a canker disease, willow anthracnose ("Marssonina salicicola"), which makes infected trees very short-lived and unsightly. "Salix babylonica" (Babylon willow) has many cultivars, including: Various cultivars of "Salix matsudana" (Chinese willow) are now often included within "Salix babylonica", treated more broadly, including: Yet other weeping willow cultivars are derived from interspecific "Salix" hybrids, including "S. babylonica" in their parentage. The most widely
Salix matsudana this character is variable in many willows (e.g. crack willow "Salix fragilis" can have either one or two), so even this difference may not be a meaningful species distinction. Chinese willow has been introduced into many areas as an ornamental tree, including Australia, Europe and North America. A particularly popular cultivar of this species is "Salix matsudana" 'Tortuosa', the "Corkscrew willow" (also known as the Hankow willow, curly willow, dragon's claw, or globe willow), in which the branches and twigs grow in a spiral, twisting manner. As a result of the ornamental shape of the branches and twigs, this cultivar