# Weeping Willow



## Zeus. (16 Mar 2021)

Hi all,

Planning/thinking about getting a Weeping Willow and placing next to the river that runs at bottom of garden. Think it would look great. It will be beyond 10meters from the house so shouldn't have any issues with roots. The river does flood when theirs heavy rain but I don't think that would be an issue.






Recent flood pic when river was up to 4 meters at local monitoring station, normal range is 0.02m to 3.00m




all feedback/advise welcome

Zeus


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## mort (16 Mar 2021)

I'm not clever enough to know but it is very much discouraged to have such a potentially large tree that close to a house (so i'd check for any potential insurance problems) . I was looking up recommendations for a different tree and willows are suggested at 50 ft minimum. I think this is because they have very deep water sapping roots and it can cause problems but since it's near water it probably won't be any issue at all for you. They do get massive but again that's only a problem likely for future generations and if you keep it at a slightly more manageable size, if it does go mental,  then I think it would just become a nice focal point.


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## Zeus. (16 Mar 2021)

mort said:


> willows are suggested at 50 ft minimum



Just checked my Google Sketchup plans and the closest point is 16meters (53 foot), Garden/river is north facing so don't have to worry about shade from it. Do like the idea of fishing up to it, do like fishing up to a feature which would be about 22m from house


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## LondonDragon (16 Mar 2021)

Nice backyard  know nothing about Willow Tree but loving the vibe! Fishing possible too? I see you canoeing


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## howanic (16 Mar 2021)

I have a weeping willow that is at the end of my patio, about 12ft from my back door.... I obviously wouldn't recommend one so close. We've had to line waste pipes and had/have all sorts of problems from the roots, but it was planted by my Nan many years ago, so for that reason we put up with it's thuggish ways. 

If it'll be far enough from your house for the roots not to be a menace, then I would go for it. They always look so beautiful over water. They're also really resilient to heavy pruning. Mine has been reduced to a stump many times over the years, just to come back with a vengeance.


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## howanic (16 Mar 2021)

Your garden is stunning btw


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## mort (16 Mar 2021)

The 50 foot recommendation I believe is because the roots roughly effect a minimum of this radius when the tree is mature. I think a good rough guide is the roots will be as wide reaching as the canopy (but that's not really true for mature trees). Willows are thirsty plants and can wreak havoc near houses,  especially if you have clay soils, because they have very deep roots that can such all the moisture out of the soil and cause foundation problems.

Saying that I don't think you will likely have any issues at all because it's roots don't need to go far to reach water, they only need to support it, and it will take many a decade to get large enough to do anything other than look pretty. They are easily chopped to size as well.


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## Zeus. (16 Mar 2021)

LondonDragon said:


> Nice backyard  know nothing about Willow Tree but loving the vibe! Fishing possible too? I see you canoeing


Not quite ours yet, in the closing BS stage of getting it and red tape holding it up.
Place has mooring rights as well, so thinking canal barge and can do the canal network of UK from back garden.


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## MirandaB (16 Mar 2021)

I would think you'd be ok,we've got crack willows around that distance going down towards the riverbank.
Will likely never happen with a weeping willow and not for many years anyway but one thing to bear in mind is if it should get blown into the water you have to bear the cost of getting it out.
Cost us a fair bit the other year as one of ours decided to come down right across the river


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## EA James (17 Mar 2021)

Looks beautiful mate, what a great view. A summer evening sat out there would be a right treat! 
What part of the world is that?


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## Zeus. (17 Mar 2021)

North Yorkshire


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## Tucker90 (17 Mar 2021)

What river is it Zeus? 

Looks a lovely spot. 

I’m from York originally! 


Edit*

Never mind, looked at the flood station, just round the corner from where I was born and raised! 

Lovely part of the world! Miss it dearly! 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## foxfish (18 Mar 2021)

I love willow trees, they are just about the fastest growing trees you can get but quite short lived.
Mine has already started to show fresh spring foliage and always the last to drop there leaves late aurtum .


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## Wookii (18 Mar 2021)

Fantastic! I'd love that as a back garden - a bit of fishing whilst BBQ'ing! I'd be planting a couple of Alders too to give myself a regular supply of cones!


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## Wolf6 (18 Mar 2021)

Zeus. said:


> Hi all,
> 
> Planning/thinking about getting a Weeping Willow and placing next to the river that runs at bottom of garden. Think it would look great. It will be beyond 10meters from the house so shouldn't have any issues with roots. The river does flood when theirs heavy rain but I don't think that would be an issue.
> View attachment 164959View attachment 164960
> ...


Seems like the distance is long enough, and a weeping willow adds so much atmosphere to a large garden. Just keep in mind growing stuff below it will be hard as it takes up a lot of light, but I've always been a practical gardener, if blahblahblahblah gets too big or I change my mind, its easy enough to remove. Even big trees can be gone in a day


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