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Siting a Corkscrew Willow

9 years ago

Hopefully this hasn't been covered--nothing came up in a search. I've recently moved into a new house, surrounded by a bunch of mature-to-geriatric trees. I expect many of them will be either dead or unsightly/dangerous enough to remove within 10 years. In some places, I am able to put in an understory of saplings, in order to get a head start on replacing some of my giants when they finally come down. One of the trees I really want to put in is a corkscrew willow, mostly because of the awesome branches, but also because of its reputation as a fast grower. However, I've also heard horror stories about the aggressive surface-level roots of willows, so I wanted to find a good location.

The first place I'd like to put one is in the "V" where my circular driveway connects. The pavement is right there, of course, but I could conceivably site the tree far enough from the driveway to keep it the roots from being a problem. The question--how far is far enough? How far can the roots spread?

Second question, about a secondary location--how much shade can corkscrew willow take? As I said, I might be putting in an "understory" below my mature trees, and it can get quite shady in the summer. Will a willow tolerate shade as a young tree?

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Comments (8)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
9 years ago
willow isnt much of an heirloom tree ... fast to grow.. fast to shed limbs.. fast to die ... in tree years ....

find the latin name.. then look to google images under such name ...

some peeps say ... the root mass... though in a different form/shape.. can be twice as big as the tree seen above ...

so using the link ... and looking at the maturer trees .... i would suggest.. 50 to 80 feet from your driveway... that will have to be a very large V ...

i had willow at the old house.. i hate them.. with the passion of a million burning suns... unless you have a golf course ... or a park.. i suggest.. JUST ABOUT.. anything else ...

or perhaps a gullible neighbor ... lol..

if you want corkscrew... research harry lauders walking stick .... a hazel ... a shrub much more suited to suburbia.... or smaller lots ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: i did it for you .. this time
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roselee z8b S.W. Texas
9 years ago
They can be grown in a big pot. I've had mine in the large nursery pot for about ten years. I painted it, sat it in a deep saucer, stacked big stones around it for looks, and -- it looks great! It takes a lot of shade and is about 8 ft tall and 7 ft wide. I transplanted it this year to a still bigger pot and was surprised to NOT find it pot bound or with humongous roots. The friend I got my start from has it planted in the 'h-ll strip' and cuts it back every few years.
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As with other trees, the roots can either bust, buckle or compress other kinds of pipes. It may not break them, but it can mis-align them. Mainly the smaller 2" diameter and smaller PVC. Utility line locating before digging is usually free anyway. Just find out where the important stuff is, and plant the tree away from the lines as much as you can. But I like those trees, and wouldn't mind one in my front yard in an urban area. As long as its maintained. There are options like pruning, root pruning, root barriers, etc.. As mentioned, if you prune routinely for control, you can restrict growth. The time to prune them is whenever a need exists. That supercedes any particular month. If you see a weakness, don't sit on it. Pruning can be done twice per year. One light thinning in winter, and another very light thinning in the growing season. Winter is an easy season for many people, to prune, because they can see more of the tree limbs and that makes pruning simpler for them. Just don't crop the top off in summer - that can cause sunburn. My walking stick is made from that tree. I've got a video of it on my site. A bit crooked, with two hand-hold sections at the top. I wood burn the tree names into my sticks. When we move back up near Beaverton, from Jacksonville, Oregon, I'm thinking of starting a "wall of walking sticks". All different genus and species.
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calliope
9 years ago
Have of three of them. They are very fast growing, up to the second story now from less than ten years ago. I enjoy the looks of mine, but to say they are messy (shedding branches constantly) is an understatement. Never had an issue with surface roots.
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mikebotann
9 years ago
I just don't think of it as a front yard tree.
Harry Lauder's Walking Stick is much better if you like twisty branches.
Mike
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calliope
9 years ago
I agree. The branch structure is interesting, but they are not 'tidy' trees nor do they have a pleasing silhouette. One of mine has a lot of burls on the lower trunk. I planted it not expecting it to be around well into the future (probably snap off or get a disease yet live forever regenerating itself from a stump), and would prefer to install a specimen tree in that situation you wouldn't have to be worried about replacing and starting all over with anywhere soon.
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NathanJames
Original Author
9 years ago
There are two other homes in the neighborhood with Corkscrew Willow in their front yards, so it wouldn't be out of place. We live just outside the city, but it's in a little set of hills and valleys (formerly a golf course), so there's a lot of undeveloped land and big lots--it's got a rustic look. My thinking was that I could put it in alongside some slow growers, and then tear it out when the others were big enough.

Anyway, how about question two--will a cutting take off in the shade?
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mikebotann
9 years ago
Corkscrew Willow is extremely easy to root in water or even wet soil. I've had em' root in a pile of woodchips.
As a tree, they're not good looking, but florists like the twigs. Sort of like a rose. Generally the plant is not good looking, but the blossoms are beautiful.
Fall color and silhouette are nothing to brag about.
Here's one I have. It's different in that the twigs are yellow. Not showing well at this time however.
It's still in a pot, waiting for me to make a decision. Could be awhile.
Mike
{{gwi:477114}}
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calliope
9 years ago
They prefer a sunnier spot to a shadier one. Two of mine have some shading, but in one instance, it's light and dappled. I would expect lankiness to be a tendency in shade, as well as some directional growth if the light is not uniformly distributed. It's obvious you admire this tree, and if someone is attracted to a tree enough to champion for it, then I suspect they'd enjoy it and not second guess themselves. You have seen it in other yards and seem comfortable with its presentation. If it's not to your taste in a couple years, they're not that difficult to fell. Be aware they are hosts for a mottley assortment of critters and keep a rake handy.
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