Download Article 90 Salix babylonica Weeping Willow

Weeds in our Area (Part Ninety)
By Bob and Ena McIntyre, Botanical Society of S.A. – Garden Route
Weeping Willow (Salix babylonica)
The Weeping Willow (origin China) has strong connections with the early history of our country.
Evidently its dispersal throughout the country came about at the time the Trekkers moved away
and planted these hardy trees wherever they went or rested, invariably close to water-courses. It
is indeed a beautiful and very graceful tree. Already during the 1950’s gardening books made a
point of warning gardeners to plant the Willow alone near ponds and pools and away from flowerbeds as its wide-spreading roots affected the fertility of adjacent ground. The plants are abundant
from the Southern Cape right through to the northern reaches of the republic.
Willows feature strongly in the little Karoo, one can hardly imagine the riverbanks without any and
I recall very clearly an enormous specimen perched on the edge of a permanent natural pool
where I spent many happy hours watching
masked weavers noisily building their nests.
Identification: The Willow is easily
recognisable by its very distinctive shape.
The branchlets are long and slender, often
drooping almost to the ground. The trees are
deciduous and between 5 – 8m in height.
The leaves are bright green above and pale
beneath. In spring the young leaves are silky
and hairy becoming hairless and smooth in
summer. Leaf margins are finely toothed,
ending in a long tapering point. The flowers
are very small catkins of approximately
20mm long appearing August – October.
Fruits are small greenish capsules without
stalks. Salix babylonica’s invasive status is
that of transformer, invading watercourses. It is a declared Category 2 invader (grown under
controlled conditions only)
Control: The Willow reproduces from fallen branches. No herbicide is registered and manual
control is therefore the best solution. Remove young plants by hand and if you have a willow on
your property, simply collect fallen branches before they sprout.
Indigenous Substitutes: Salix mucronata subsp.capensis (Cape Willow). Rhus pendulina (White
Karee, Rhus leptodictya (Bergkaree)
References: “ALIEN WEEDS AND INVASIVE PLANTS”; Lesley Henderson. Copyright © 2001
Agricultural Research Council, Ornamental Shrubs and Trees for Gardens in SA; Una v/d Spuy, A-Z
of Gardening in SA; W G Sheat