Japanese Willow Ugly Shoots

Question

Hello. After years of neglect I gave a Japanese’s Willow tree a severe cut back. All of the shoots coming out of the main arms are the plain green shoots you see coming from the base and not the pretty white/pink leafy kind. The pretty leaf stems are still there from other branches but in short supply. Will this tree return to it’s former glory or is it beyond recovery?

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Answer 1

It sounds like water sprouts are coming from the limbs that were severely pruned. Remove any suckers coming from the base of the tree. You may need to do a rejuvenation pruning. Here is how:

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/willow/japanese-willow-pruning.htm