We are experiencing a drought and the leaves on my hybrid willow trees (austree) are turning brown and falling off. Are they going dormant for the year? What about watering them?
Keep them watered as best you can. The heat and the lack of natures own water has many trees, shrubs and such dropping their leaves more than normal. All we can do is to try and keep the root zones somewhat moist and then when some cooler weather moves in and hopefully some rain, they should be okay.
Is it true that if I grow a weeping willow tree in my yard that it would drain up all the water that's supposed to go to my other trees and plants and kill them?
Yes and no. Weeping willows are very water hungry trees and they will drink up large amounts of water from your soil. If you have a yard that is already pretty dry, it is possible that it would hog the remaining water it could reach.
But, if your yard is pretty swampy or wet, it would be difficult for one tree to drink up all the available water. Also, a willow tree can only reach out so far for water. It may take away water from a tree near it, say 20-30 feet, but would not be able to do so with a tree that was 200 feet away.
We have a fungal growth on our weeping willow tree. Brown growth in about four locations along the trunk. Not sure if it's killing the tree, as it looks really healthy right now. It has to be sucking something from the tree. Right?
Beth and Neil
Can't really answer the question. Could you take a sample to your local agricultural extension office for identification and treatment recommendations? Could it be hardening sap oozing from a woodpecker hole?
What is a Salix tree?
I have three of these willows I planted last summer. They are budding now, late March. Should I remove all dry leaves and mulch from last year...left around trees to protect during winter...and add compost and new mulch? Soil was thoroughly amended at planting. If composting, should I leave compost on top of soil to avoid damaging willow roots that are shallow and far-reaching? I have been composting kitchen scraps in this area for several years, but there is still plenty of clay.
As long as you used organic mulch, leaving it on the ground allows it to continue to decompose and add to the fertility of your soil. You would only need to pick it up if your trees had disease or pest problems that you wanted to control. Just put fresh mulch on top of the old -- the more the merrier. Here
We have a 1 year old Globe Willow. It seems to be doing great. Question: Limbs growing from the bottom of the trunk. Should we prune these? Or as the tree gets bigger will these become part of the top?
You should remove them. They are referred to as suckers and some trees are more prone to them than others. They will not help with the health of the tree ad generally only sap energy from the tree, so it is best to remove them.
My willow hybrids were planted last April. They had a very slow start. Leaves were green, not too many and not a lot of fullness. This year they look brown and twiggy. Seem to have sprouts. Do you think they still have a chance on growing? They do not look too healthy. What should I do? Give it some time, or do think they could be dead? I gave them some Miracle Gro food last week. Our weather hasn't been the greatest...cold and not much sun. We live in Buffalo.
This article will help determine if your plants are still alive: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/environmental/how-to-tell-if-a-plant-is-dead-and-how-to-recover-an-almost-dead-plant.htm If there are sprouts, this could be a good indication that they still have some life left in them.