Tree · Salicaceae
Weeping Willow
Salix babylonica
Give it water and room to spread, and this gentle giant will drape the ground in soft green.
Full sun
Every 3–7 days
USDA 6–8
30–50 ft · 9.1–15.2 m
Overview
There is something calming about a willow beside water. Its long, slender branches trail nearly to the ground and sway at the faintest breeze, which is just why you find it leaning over so many ponds and streams. It belongs to the willow family, and though it carries the old name Salix babylonica, its real home turned out to be China.
Do not let its size worry you, even though this is a fast-growing tree that fills out quickly, reaching 30 to 50 feet (9 to 15 m) tall and about as wide in only a few years. That speed does come with a catch worth knowing early. The wood stays brittle and the roots wander shallow and wide in search of water, so your willow will be happiest with open ground well away from drains, paving, and foundations.
Give it sunshine and damp soil and it nearly raises itself, which is reassuring if this is your first big tree. The fair trade is a little tidying, since it drops litter, loses the odd limb in a storm, and lives a shorter life than its size suggests. Plant it somewhere roomy with water close by, and few trees will reward you with such a graceful, drooping shape.
Care
The short version: give your willow full sun and moist ground, ideally close to water, hand it plenty of open space far from pipes and pavement, and tidy the brittle wood in late winter so storms have less to break.
Light
Your willow will be happiest in full sun, though it takes a bit of partial shade without complaint. More light gives you a fuller, healthier canopy, and it helps the leaves dry quickly too, which keeps fungal troubles from settling in.
Water
This is a tree that genuinely loves wet feet, so you can relax about overwatering it. It flourishes beside ponds and streams, shrugs off standing water and the occasional flood, and simply wants soil that stays reliably moist. It can weather a short dry spell, and if a drought drags on without water it drops leaves to protect itself, then bounces back.
Soil
Few trees are this relaxed about their soil, so this part is easy to get right. A weeping willow settles into clay, loam, or sand and copes with acidic or alkaline ground alike, and unlike fussier trees it stays content in poor drainage and soggy, wet spots.
Temperature
You can trust it across a wide sweep of weather, since it holds up comfortably from -9°F to 100°F (-23°C to 38°C). That hardiness makes it a friendly choice for most temperate gardens, standing up to hard winters and hot summers alike.
Humidity
Everyday outdoor air is all it asks for, so there is nothing to measure or fuss over here. What matters more is gentle air movement, because a still, crowded canopy is where leaf diseases tend to get their start.
Feeding
A balanced general-purpose tree fertilizer in early spring is plenty for a young tree finding its feet. Once it has settled onto a moist site it rarely needs feeding at all, growing along happily on its own.
Pruning
Reach for the pruners in late winter to early spring, before the leaves open, and take out any dead, weak, or storm-damaged wood. Because the wood is brittle and snaps under ice and snow, trimming back weak crotches now spares you bigger breakage later.
Repotting
This one lives out in the open ground rather than a pot, so there is no repotting to stay on top of. If you begin with nursery stock, just get it planted before the roots start to circle the container or lift and girdle at the base.
Size & spacing
Picture a large tree in time, one that stretches to 30 to 50 feet (9 to 15 m) tall and spreads about as wide. Give it that whole 30 to 50 feet (9 to 15 m) of clear room so the roots and trailing crown have space, kept well back from buildings and pipes.
When to plant
You can settle a weeping willow into the ground in spring or fall, whenever the soil works easily and the sharpest cold has eased off. Its catkins are early risers, opening through April and May, arriving with or just before the fresh leaves to gently mark the turn of the season.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: Spring or fall, after the ground is workable
- Harvest: Catkins appear in early spring (April to May), before or with the leaves
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 6–8
Temperature: down to -23°C
Troubleshooting
Most willow worries turn up on the leaves, the young shoots, or those brittle limbs, and a tree that grows this fast can quietly carry a problem for a while before it spreads. The good news is that catching the early signs below usually means you can put things right. Match what you are seeing, then step in with confidence.
Rough crown swellings and a slowly fading tree
Tumor-like galls swelling at the crown and roots are the signature of crown gall, a bacterium that sadly has no cure once it settles in. In wet, airless soil the roots may also rot and turn dark. The kindest move is to dig out and destroy a badly galled tree, sort out the drainage wherever rot is the real trouble, and take care never to wound the roots or lower trunk as you work.
Fix:
- Remove and destroy severely galled plants
- Avoid wounding roots and crown during cultivation
- Improve drainage where root rot is suspected
Blackened spring shoots and scabby leaf spots
When willow scab and black canker land on the same tree, gardeners call the pair willow blight, and the new shoots darken and die back fast. Try not to worry: cut away and burn the blighted, cankered growth, gather up every fallen leaf, and thin the canopy so air can move through. A labeled fungicide only earns its place in a truly bad year, and even then only alongside that careful cleanup.
Fix:
- Prune out and destroy blighted and cankered shoots
- Rake and remove fallen infected leaves
- Improve air circulation and avoid overhead wetting
- Apply a labeled fungicide in severe cases following extension guidance
Curled sticky leaves, or fine sawdust on the trunk
Leaves that curl under a sticky, shining film are usually the work of aphids or scale feeding away, while sawdust and little entry holes on the trunk point instead to borers. Rinse aphids off with a hose or treat scale with horticultural oil, and keep the tree nicely watered so borers find it a tougher target. Any branch the borers have already tunneled is best cut out and destroyed.
Fix:
- Hose off or treat aphids; horticultural oil for scale
- Maintain vigor with adequate water to limit borer attack
- Remove and destroy borer-infested branches
- Use labeled insecticides only when infestations are severe
Branches that snap and split during storms
Willow wood is brittle by nature, so limbs tend to tear at narrow crotches whenever ice, snow, or wind bears down on them. Prune out broken and weak branches the moment you notice them, and shorten any overlong limb so a storm has less to catch hold of. Gently shaping the tree while it is young builds sturdier joins that hold up for years to come.
Fix:
- Prune out broken and weak limbs promptly
- Reduce overextended branches to lessen storm loading
- Remove deadwood regularly
Toxicity
Here is a reassuring note for anyone with pets: the weeping willow is not a poisonous tree. Its leaves and twigs sit safely around cats, dogs, horses, rabbits, livestock, and birds, and rabbits will happily nibble willow as a browse. The single thing to keep in mind is that the bark holds salicylates, the natural source of aspirin, so no one should be eating it in any real amount.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
A nibbled willow leaf will not poison your cat. As with any greenery, a tummy unused to plants might feel briefly off, so it helps to nudge a determined chewer toward a better snack.
Dogs None
Weeping willow is safe company for dogs, and a curious mouthful of leaves does no real harm. Just discourage a dog from stripping bark by the mouthful, since that bark carries the salicylates behind aspirin.
Horses None
Horses can browse willow quite safely, and its foliage has long been counted harmless to them.
Rabbits Safe
Willow leaves and twigs are a well-loved, safe browse for rabbits, and are often handed over as a gnawing treat.
Livestock Safe
Cattle, goats, and sheep graze willow with no ill effect, and the leaves carry no poisoning risk to a grazing herd.
Birds Safe
Birds nest and forage among willows freely, and neither the leaves nor the catkins pose them any threat at all.
People Safe
Weeping willow is not a poisonous tree, so its leaves are no danger to people. One thing worth knowing: the bark carries salicylates, the natural source of aspirin, so it should not be eaten in any amount.
No special toxicity handling required; as with any plant, discourage pets from chewing large quantities of foliage or bark.
Varieties
A handful of named willows are lovely for the shape or color of their growth, and these are the ones it is nice to be able to recognize.
Tortuosa (Corkscrew / Contorted Willow, Dragon's Claw Willow)
You will notice its branches, shoots, and leaves curling into a twisted corkscrew that looks loveliest on new growth and becomes a real showpiece once winter strips the leaves away.
Golden Weeping Willow (Salix × sepulcralis 'Chrysocoma')
This lively hybrid trails bright golden-yellow branches that warm up a bare winter garden beautifully.
Aurea
Gardeners cherish this one for the warm golden color of its young stems.
How to propagate
Few trees are as forgiving to multiply as a willow, so even a nervous first-timer can raise several young plants from a cutting or a branch coaxed down to the soil.
Stem cuttingsEasy
Late winter to early spring (hardwood) or summer (softwood) · Several weeks to root; rapid establishment thereafter
Hardly any tree roots as willingly as a willow, which makes this a wonderfully forgiving place to begin. Take hardwood cuttings in late winter or early spring, or softwood ones in summer, and even a plain length pushed into moist soil will strike roots within a few weeks and then grow away fast. This is simply the usual way the tree is raised.
LayeringEasy
Spring to summer · One season
Low branches will nearly do the job for you. Pin one down against moist ground anywhere from spring through summer, and it roots right where it touches, handing you a brand-new plant in a single season.
Myths
A weeping willow is poisonous to cats and dogs, so it has to be kept away from pets.
Willows simply are not on the ASPCA toxic-plant lists, and the closely related purpleosier willow is listed as non-toxic to dogs, cats, and horses. The genuine hazards here are hungry roots and brittle wood, not poison at all. The bark does carry salicylates, the natural aspirin compound, so it is best not eaten in quantity.
A weeping willow is a tough, long-lived shade tree that suits a small yard.
It grows fast but lives only a short while and asks for steady attention along the way. The wood stays brittle and the roots chase water hard, working into drains and sewers and heaving up pavement, all of which makes it an unhappy fit for a tight or built-up plot.