Dappled willow leaves turning brown. Should I be concerned?

5 years ago

I purchased and planted this dappled willow in early May. There were a couple frosts and freezes not long after, but we had it protected and there was no immediate damage. It seems to have been thriving quite well in the weeks since. Yesterday, though, I noticed many of the new growth is turning brown. We did have a week of very hot, humid, rainy weather about 3 weeks back.

It is in clay soil that gets light but consistent run-off from our neighbor's vegetable garden. It's a boggy area, although well-drained, which is why I chose it for that area. It gets full sun from the east til about noon or so and sun from the west starting around 3 til 6 or 7pm.

Should I be concerned about the browning or is this likely a delayed response to transplant > freeze > heat/rain? (Ken, before you say it, I know: you can't kill willows and if it's alive you're doing fine, lol. ;-) I just want to make sure there's nothing I should be doing.)

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Comments (5)

DCF-Z6A
Original Author
5 years ago
If it helps, this is a collage pic of the day of planting, 3 weeks later (top right) and today.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
5 years ago
(Ken, before you say it, I know: you can't kill willows and if it's alive you're doing fine, lol. ;-)

===>>>>

lol ....

light frost .. can cause minor damage.. that doesnt appear for days .. especially if nights are very cool .. or until a heat wave .. hence the term light.. and minor ...

so a little leaf browning is NBD ....

transplant shock. or stress is MINOR ... if it doesnt show up for days or weeks .. or until heat wave ...

so which is the cause.. how the heck do i know ...

one is leaf damage from lack of water due to interfering with the roots at planting .. and the other is leaf damage from cold ... one ting for sure.. white tissue is the easiest to harm ...

all that said .. based on new growth.. the only thing that seems currently stressed is you .. take a chill pill ... as you note.. its a darn willow .. lol ...

btw: i always wanted to see if i could root cuttings off one of these ... since willow generally roots easily and fast ... and since soon enough.. you will probably be beating it back with a truck ... maybe you can try to do it with some of your prunings.. just to find out ... and i doubt you can over water a willow ....

other than proper watering .. and i doubt you can over water a willow .... i dont see what if anything you need to be doing.. beside the noted self medicating.. lol ...

ken
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DCF-Z6A
Original Author
5 years ago
Thanks. Luckily I'm not stressing over it - just attempting to learn what is and isn't stress-worthy. But you don't have to twist my arm to imbibe in a self-medicatation session. ;-)

(Am definitely planning to attempting pruning transplants next spring - we have lots of area where these could help with erosion and cover! I'll post back and let you know!)
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
5 years ago
do the research to find out what age cuttings you take ... and then ...

why not do it now.... you could take some cuttings this season.. and plant them in fall .. why wait ..

3 or 5 small cuttings.. arent going to harm your rather large plant ...

and i would put them all in one pot ...they can be separated if they live long enough ...

ken

ps: your a card on the imbibation .. lol.. is that a word???? .. omg,. it is.. but i spelled it wrong .. go figure: https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffcm&q=imbibation&ia=definition
Cheryl K
12 months ago
Mine is doing the same thing and we haven't had a frost or anything. It's in full sun...I have 3 plants and all 3 are having the brown tips. One is in great soil the other two are in slightly clay soil. It's not a water issue as the rain has been pretty consistent enough to keep it watered.