Willow are very cross-compatible, and numerous hybrids occur, both naturally and in cultivation. A well-known ornamental example is the weeping willow ("Salix × sepulcralis"), which is a hybrid of Peking willow ("Salix babylonica") from China and white willow ("Salix alba") from Europe. The hybrid cultivar 'Boydii' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. Numerous cultivars of "Salix" L. have been developed and named over the centuries. New selections of cultivars with superior technical and ornamental characteristics have been chosen deliberately and applied to various purposes. Most recently, "Salix" has become an important source for bioenergy production and for
Salix lemmonii edges, and hairless and waxy or slightly hairy. The inflorescence is a stout catkin of flowers a few centimeters long, the female catkins lengthening to 6 or 7 centimeters as the fruits develop. This willow sometimes hybridizes with "Salix geyeriana", to which it is closely related. This shrub is commonly used in revegetation projects in its native range, where it is useful for stabilizing eroded riparian habitat. Salix lemmonii Salix lemmonii is a species of willow known by the common name Lemmon's willow, named after J.G. Lemmon. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to California to