DescriptionPlanting InstructionsAfter CareDelivery & Guarantee
Goat Willow Plants - Delivered by Mail Order from the Nursery with a 1 Year Guarantee
Goat Willow trees, Salix caprea, are one of the Pussy Willows, which have fluffy silver catkins. Goat willow is happy on dry ground, has fairly oval shaped leaves and its round canopy lacks the hanging branches that are so distinctive of other willow trees. It is suitable for the average sized garden.
Goat Willow is not really ideal for a clipped hedge.
It can be grown as a screening tree up to about 10-15 metres high. It is a decent windbreak tree.
Browse all of our other varieties of Willow trees & hedging for sale.
Goat Willow plants are only delivered bareroot, during winter (Nov-March).
All of our young trees and shrubs are measured by their height in centimetres above the ground (the roots aren't measured).
General description of Salix caprea plants:
Common Names: Goat Willow, Great Sallow
The catkins appear in early spring, while the branches are still bare, and have a lovely silver, silky coating of hairs before they ripen. These are great for bees and it is well known for being a favourite with many species of caterpillar. The goat moth also lays its eggs around the trunk of this tree.
The catkins on the male tree ripen to become coated with yellow pollen and the females turn a bit green, becoming beautifully spiky after pollination. The numerous seeds are tiny, floating through the air on wisps of cotton. They can only germinate on bare ground and even then will usually fail unless quickly pushed against the earth by wind or rain, so they don't present a nuisance for most gardens.
The Goat Willow is unlike other willow trees, with its oval leaves and its ability to grow on dry, chalky soil. It also doesn't propagate well from cuttings.
History & uses of Salix caprea
Salix caprea means Goat willow and this name probably comes from an illustration in a famous "herbal" (an old name for a book on plants) by Hieronymus Bock, published in 1546.
The picture showed a goat grazing on the tree and this book was still around when the tree came to be named with the modern system over 200 years later. It seems likely that this was the inspiration for the name, rather than the tree being especially popular with goats, who a known to eat almost anything!
This European tree has been naturalised in Britain since Roman times.
Notes on planting Goat Willow:
Salix caprea will grow on just about any soil and doesn't need damp terrain to do well, though it is also happy by water. It can be planted near the coast or in the city. A sunny site is required.
We've noticed that several books say that Goat willow doesn't do well on chalk, which is true of most willows. However, the Warren Nature Reserve in South London, a disused railway line converted into woodland, is practically carved out of chalk and has a number of Goat Willows growing happily in the thin soil on top of its mounds.
Prepare your site before planting:
It is good to dig over the area where you intend to plant several months in advance. Destroy the weeds first: nettles, brambles and ground elder are tough and a glyphosate based weed-killer is the best way to remove them. Then dig the soil over; remove rocks, roots and other rubbish. Mix in well rotted compost or manure down to the depth of about 2 spades.
If you have a heavy clay soil, it might be too difficult to dig over for most of the year. Heavy clay is fertile soil, so you don't really need to improve it; killing the weeds is still necessary.
Remember to water establishing plants during dry weather for at least a year after planting.
Planting accessories:
Prepare your site for planting by killing the weeds and grass with Roundup weed killer.
If you are planting in an area with rabbit and/or deer, you will need to use a protective plastic spiral for each plant, supported by a bamboo cane.
If your soil quality is poor, we recommend using mycorrhizal "friendly fungi" on the roots of new trees and shrubs.
You can also improve your soil with bonemeal organic fertiliser and Growmore.
After you plant your Goat Willow trees, the most important thing to do is water them in dry weather. You will also need to weed around the plants. Both of these will be necessary for at least a year after planting.
Water thoroughly but not too often: let the soil get close to drying out before watering your plants again.
Special notes on caring for Goat Willow:
Goat Willow is a very tough plant that shouldn't need special attention once it has established. If pruning is necessary, it is best do it in winter. Always hire a tree surgeon to remove large branches.
Hygiene & Diseases:
Dead, damaged or diseased wood can be pruned off as soon as it appears.
Disinfect your pruning tools between every cut if there is any sign of disease.
Burn or dispose of any diseased material, do not compost it.
Read our full terms and conditions here.
Delivery: The basic delivery charge for orders of bareroot plants is £9.49 + vat, which increases to £12.55 + vat if you add any pot-grown plants, standard trees or fruit trees to the order.
Because couriers sometimes experience delays, we schedule delivery by week, not by day. Therefore, please plan your planting day for the weekend at the end of the delivery week or for the week following delivery, at the earliest.
You can choose the delivery week that suits you during checkout and we will email you the day before your plants are due to arrive.
Payment: We do not charge your card until we begin to prepare your order for packing.
Guarantee: If any plants die within a year, we will replace them. We only ask that you follow our planting & growing instructions and sent us clear photographs of the dead plants in situ, so we can help to make sure that the replacement plants succeed. You only pay for the delivery of the replacements.
Please note that our guarantee is void if there is a hosepipe ban in your area: your newly planted hedging must be watered in dry weather while it is establishing. The best way to water is very thoroughly every few days: at least once a week if there is no heavy rain.
Our nursery has been supplying container grown and bareroot hedging plants to gardeners, farmers and town planners since 1949. Our website started in 2003, so we do understand the concerns that you may have about buying hedging plants online. If any of your plants are damaged when they arrive or if you are otherwise not satisfied with your order after you inspect it, please repackage it and contact us. We will give you a refund or send replacements and send a courier to come and collect the unwanted plants.
