FLORA OF ICELAND elements: Alnus alnobetula, Green Alder, Sitkaölur

Alnus alnobetula; The Green Alder(?) is a tall shrub up to 1½m. tall. An interesting detail: on their roots they have nitrogen-fixating nodules, like the members of the pea-family.
  - The leaves are shiny green on top, light green below. They are ovoid in shape, 3-8cm long, 2-6cm broad, with heavily dented margins.
  - The flowers are arranged in catkins. They appear - unlike many other Alders - in late spring after the leaves have unfolded. The male catkins are long and drooping, while the female catkins are globose maturing late autumn.
  - It is an introduced species on Iceland. The photo's are from a small forest/bush area near Reykhólar, where apparently the bushes were many decades old (according to the local farmer). I have seen it elsewhere on Iceland as well.
  - It is a member of the Betulaceae, the Birch family. The name "Green Alder" is confusing as this name is also used for the species A.viride. However, some say "viride" is an illegal name for "alnobetula". I leave it to the specialists. The Icelandic shrubs are regarded to belong to the subspecies "sinuata" of Alnus alnobetula. The Icelandic name is Sitkaölur.