Plants sometimes forming clones by stem fragmentation. Stems: branches (sometimes ± brittle at base), yellow-brown or olive-brown, not or weakly glaucous, glabrous; branchlets yellow-brown or olive-brown, violet tinged, glabrous. Leaves (sometimes opposite or subopposite); stipules absent; petiole shallowly grooved adaxially, 2-7 mm, glabrous adaxially; largest medial blade lorate, narrowly oblong, narrowly oblanceolate, oblanceolate, 35-77 × 5-20 mm, base convex or rounded, margins strongly revolute, entire or serrulate, apex acute, acuminate, or convex, abaxial surface glaucous, glabrous, adaxial dull to sublustrous, glabrous; proximal blade margins entire; juvenile blade yellowish green or reddish, glabrous or sparsely pubescent abaxially, hairs white, sometimes also ferruginous. Catkins flowering before leaves emerge, (subopposite, recurved); staminate stout or subglobose, 25-33 × 6-10 mm, flowering branchlet 0 mm; pistillate densely flowered, slender or stout, 13.5-34.5(-35 in fruit) × 3-7 mm, flowering branchlet 0.5-3 mm; floral bract black or bicolor, 0.8-1.6 mm, apex rounded, abaxially hairy, hairs straight or wavy. Staminate flowers: adaxial nectary oblong, square, or ovate, 0.4-0.8 mm; filaments connate; anthers (distinct), purple turning yellow, ellipsoid or globose, 0.4-0.5 mm. Pistillate flowers: adaxial nectary ovate, 0.3-0.7 mm; ovary obturbinate, beak gradually tapering to styles; ovules 6 per ovary; styles 0.2-0.3 mm. Capsules 2.5-5 mm. 2n = 38. Flowering mid Mar-mid May. Floodplains and shores, fens, swamps, alder thickets, sandy and limestone beaches, low dunes; 0-900 m; introduced; N.B., Nfld. and Labr. (Nfld.), N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que.; Calif., Conn., Del., D.C., Ga., Ill., Iowa, Ky., Maine, Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., Mo., N.H., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Oreg., Pa., R.I., Utah, Vt., Va., W.Va., Wis.; Europe. Salix purpurea occurrence in Ohio is based on information from T. S. Cooperrider (pers. comm.).