Hi friends, I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday season. I am here in search of some help, so I won't beat around the "bush"... anyhow.
My girlfriends' birthday is coming up in February and I really want to get her a nice full grown weeping willow for her back yard (it just so happens that I know she loves them)...
Any ideas on how to buy or get one ? I could resort to buying the small ones that you have to grow, but I don't think it would leave the same wow effect as a whole new tree in her backyard... right?
**a full grown willow.
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gardenkevin
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- Joined: Mon Jan 08, 2007 1:54 pm
Hi Garden Kevin,
Welcome to The Helpful Gardener. Sounds like a wonderful birthday gift, but how's the budget? When you say a "full grown weeping willow", that could be a 40' tall tree! That can cost thousands to purchase and have planted.
Weeping willows are trees with massive root systems and should NOT be planted within AT LEAST 100' of a house or structure. Does your girlfriend have a very large piece of property?
These trees can also be problematic with their messy habit of dropping twigs and small limbs. They are also short lived - about 25 to 30 years.
How about a weeping pussy willow aka Kilmarnock willow aka Salix caprea ‘Kilmarnock’?
https://www.szkolkarstwo.pl/images/article/2004/05/449/drzewa_17.jpg
https://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/sacak.htm
https://www.waysidegardens.com/product_images/47513.jpg
And here's a couple in leaf.
https://photos.jardindupicvert.com/ph_60_cp/P009/997-1.jpg
https://www.drzewa.com.pl/product_info.php?cPath=3_74&products_id=427&osCsid=6a109100d7e344e544081a242736b34a
Newt
Welcome to The Helpful Gardener. Sounds like a wonderful birthday gift, but how's the budget? When you say a "full grown weeping willow", that could be a 40' tall tree! That can cost thousands to purchase and have planted.
Weeping willows are trees with massive root systems and should NOT be planted within AT LEAST 100' of a house or structure. Does your girlfriend have a very large piece of property?
These trees can also be problematic with their messy habit of dropping twigs and small limbs. They are also short lived - about 25 to 30 years.
How about a weeping pussy willow aka Kilmarnock willow aka Salix caprea ‘Kilmarnock’?
https://www.szkolkarstwo.pl/images/article/2004/05/449/drzewa_17.jpg
https://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/sacak.htm
https://www.waysidegardens.com/product_images/47513.jpg
And here's a couple in leaf.
https://photos.jardindupicvert.com/ph_60_cp/P009/997-1.jpg
https://www.drzewa.com.pl/product_info.php?cPath=3_74&products_id=427&osCsid=6a109100d7e344e544081a242736b34a
Newt
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gardenkevin
- Newly Registered
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Mon Jan 08, 2007 1:54 pm
Newt, I was going through the index of some local nurseries and I figured out that a weeping willow idea was poorly thought out... good thing I didn't wait till the last moment, huh? And with your input I've decided that the Pussy Weeping Willow is the way to go, but my concern is as follows, how amazingly will it look in February? Will it have any leaves on it? Will you even be able to say its a willow (assuming you're not a member of some sort of helpful online community for gardeners)?
Kevin, I'm relieved that you thought that one out! 
The Kilmarnock willow is decidious so it won't have leaves in the winter. You don't say where you live or where the tree will live, but in hardiness zones 8 or 9 to 4 they will definately lose their leaves. What will be left is an interesting limb structure. If you live where there is snow it can be especially pretty in winter. You can do a google using the common or botanical name and click on 'Images' to get many pictures of it.
Do you want something that looks interesting in the spring and summer months or do you have long winters and want something that looks interesting in the winter? Another small tree that comes to mind is Henry Lauder's Walking Stick aka Corkscrew Hazel aka Contorted Filbert aka Corylus avellana 'Contorta'. It looks so interesting in the winter. It tends to be a slow grower.
https://images.google.com/images?hl=en&lr=&q=contorted%20filbert&btnG=Search&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi
https://www.paghat.com/hazelcatkins.html
Newt
The Kilmarnock willow is decidious so it won't have leaves in the winter. You don't say where you live or where the tree will live, but in hardiness zones 8 or 9 to 4 they will definately lose their leaves. What will be left is an interesting limb structure. If you live where there is snow it can be especially pretty in winter. You can do a google using the common or botanical name and click on 'Images' to get many pictures of it.Do you want something that looks interesting in the spring and summer months or do you have long winters and want something that looks interesting in the winter? Another small tree that comes to mind is Henry Lauder's Walking Stick aka Corkscrew Hazel aka Contorted Filbert aka Corylus avellana 'Contorta'. It looks so interesting in the winter. It tends to be a slow grower.
https://images.google.com/images?hl=en&lr=&q=contorted%20filbert&btnG=Search&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi
https://www.paghat.com/hazelcatkins.html
Newt