Least willow

What’s the smallest tree in the world? It depends on what you define as a tree, but my favourite candidate has the most adorable name possible: the least willow.

Salix herbacea is a plant in the willow family, and it grows in the far north of America, Europe, and Asia. It also goes by the equally adorable names dwarf willow and snowbed willow. At its maximum, it grows a full six centimetres high.

Now, some definitions of trees have height qualifiers, which makes a title like “shortest tree” irrelevant. But the least willow grows leaves (tiny leaves). It has branches (tiny branches). It has a woody stem (a tiny trunk). So I’m going to call it a tree. An adorable cute little tree.

• Salix herbacea