Sorry! Our minimum order is £100. 12/3: fruit trees still available

White willow in flower

White Willow (Salix alba)

White Willow is identified by its beautiful silvery leaves, which turn yellow in autumn. It's often found naturally with Alder as it also enjoys wet conditions. It's a fast growing, unfussy, vigorous tree.It is dioecious, with male and female catkins on separate trees; the male catkins are slightly longer than the female. There seems to be some confusion as to whether it's an archaeophyte - that's to say, whether it was introduced to the UK, many, many years ago, like Sweet Chestnuts - or a "true" native. Our salix are all grown in the UK. See below for more details.
Regular price
£25.00
Regular price
Sale price
£25.00
Unit price
per 
Availability
Sold out
Prices include VAT (when applicable) and delivery to mainland UK.
We sell 60-90cm whips in multiples of 5 and larger plants - when available - individually.

Click here to be notified by email when White Willow (Salix alba) becomes available.

White Willow (Salix alba)

Value For Wildlife

Our native Salix seem to be second only to the oaks in terms of dependent species, which include several small mammals. They are an important source of early pollen and nectar for bees in the critical period of early spring, and are a food source for the caterpillars of the Comma.

Uses

Together with Osier, which is definitely a non native shrub species, Salix alba is traditionally used for making baskets and hurdles. Willow pollards are a defining characteristic of traditional lowland river and wetland landscapes like the Somerset Levels, and their rapid regrowth has led to biomass experimentation - we include them in our trees for wood fuel collection. A white willow hybrid, Salix alba Caerulea, is used for making cricket bats.

Plants For Sale

Like all the native trees we sell, our Salix alba are grown in the UK from UK origin seed. We sell 2 year old 60/90cm plants, in multiples of 5.

Suppliers: RV Roger, British Hardwood Trees.

See our planting and size guide for details and tips on planting. These White Willow trees are all bare root, and are consequently available for delivery from November until March. During the lifting season there may be up to a month's delay between placing the order and dispatching, due to weather conditions or pressure of orders, which are dealt with in date sequence. Orders for White Willows placed between March and September are confirmed in October ready for dispatch from November.

Size

  • Ultimate Height

    25m

  • Ultimate Spread

    15m

  • Time to Ultimate Height

    Over 20 years

Soil

  • Type

    Clay, loam, sand, chalk - wet

  • pH

    Neutral, acid, alkaline

Situation

  • Position

    Sheltered or exposed

  • Sunlight

    Full sun

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