Willow Problems

by Bill
(Kansas)

Showing the different sizes of the three willows

Showing the different sizes of the three willows

I bought several willow plugs earlier this year, and planted them as recommended when they arrived.

At first they all seemed the same, and although in the early summer they got some kind of fly landing on them, after spraying them with Safers End All, that seemed to clear up. They put on several feet of growth, two of them grew about four feet.

The other one, although it seemed healthy at first, now seems to be about half the size of the other two and also has some kind of foliage issue. The leaves are browning in spots, and so far although they haven't fallen off, the whole plant is so different than the others, I'm afraid it's going to die. Is there anything I can do to help it?

Comments for Willow Problems

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Aug 22, 2024
 Bought as plugs
by: Bill

These were bought as plugs from a nursery in Alberta, and mailed in the spring. They are Salix discolor, the pussy willow.
Aug 22, 2024
 Good Thing
by: Jacki

Good thing willows respond well to pruning, which is what I recommend here. I would cut the entire top part of the willow off, and it will grow new healthy shoots. If you decide to leave it until the spring, remove all the leaves before they fall, and dispose of them in the garbage, not the compost. It seems to be some kind of anthracnose or bacterial wilt starting to happen, and it will overwinter in the fallen leaves to reinfect the plants in the spring.

The odd thing to me is that only one of the willows is showing this damage, with the other two looking very healthy, and showing good growth. The middle one looks like a dwarf version of the others. Do you know what species of willow this is?

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