Desert Willows Not Doing Well

Question

Hi – I’d appreciate any guidance or suggestions. I’m in Denton County, Texas – near Dallas. About 5-6 years ago, I bought 7 desert willows from a local tree nursery, and had the nursery plant them in my back yard – I’d have preferred mesquite trees, but my Significant Other and I couldn’t agree on the mesquite trees – so desert willow was a compromise. The trees get lawn sprinkler water, and I infrequently water them by hand with a hose. Every Spring, the trees are lush and flowering and beautiful – but as it gets hotter (low 100s), they get pretty bare and drop a lot of leaves – the top 1\3=>1\4 of the trees have some fairly lush foliage, but the bottom parts of the trees are relatively bare. What’s strange is that I see a lot of suggestions for Desert Willows in North Texas, but mine aren’t doing well at all. I was thinking that it’s related to the clay soil here, which I guess means poor drainage, and that the desert willow wasn’t the best choice, but maybe that’s not the case. Desert willows planted by the City on the median strips appear to be doing a lot better than mine – perhaps they have regular irrigation, or maybe they were planted with a lot of mulch in the ground around the tree roots. Any suggestions as to what I could do with the 7 desert willows in my yard ? Yanking the trees and replacing them is an expensive possibility – I’d like to avoid doing that, but if that’s all that’s gonna work, what types of trees \ large shrubs would you suggest?

Answer 1

It is possible they are getting too much water. And they do prefer well-draining soil. You can add compost around the tree (it will filter down with rain or watering) to help with drainage. The trees should be getting enough water from rainfall. They only need supplemental irrigation in extreme drought.

Here is more information on their care, and if you decide to replace them, there is a link to trees for zone 8.

http://texastreeid.tamu.edu/content/TreeDetails/?id=30

https://aggie-hort.tamu.edu/ornamentals/natives/CHILOPSISLINEARIS.HTM

https://cales.arizona.edu/yavapai/anr/hort/byg/archive/desertwillow2018.html

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/desert-willow/caring-for-desert-willow-trees.htm

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/how-to-improve-clay-soil.htm

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/gardening-by-zone/zone-8/common-zone-8-trees.htm