Salix babylonica / matsudana Tortuosa Saplings. Dragon's Claw Willow

Corkscrew Willow, Salix babylonica Tortuosa, is an unmistakable plant with weeping branches and the famous corkscrew-like young stems. These curl around in uneven spirals, producing wavy, contorted leaves. It is a small to medium-sized tree and very ornamental in winter, when the bare branches are fully visible. The young shoots are famous for use in flower arrangements. They both look great and last for ages because they put out roots in the vase and carry on growing! Corkscrew Willow can be grown as a screening tree up to about 8 metres high.

See our selection of willow trees or our full range of hedging.

Corkscrew Willow trees 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).

Did You Know?

Although this is a Chinese tree, the name Salix matsudana comes from the Japanese botanist Sadahisa Matsudo (1857-1921). He compiled the first modern books on Chinese plants in the late 1800s. It is a famous subject for bonsai.

This popular Willow is known by many epithets worldwide, including: Corkscrew, Twisted, Curly, Chinese, Peking, Babylon, Navajo, Globe, Hankow, and Dragon's Claw.

Notes on planting Corkscrew Willow:
They love wet ground and won't tolerate chalk or shade.
The ideal spot for your trees is right beside a river or lake and they will do well in sodden, marshy ground.
Reports on its hardiness indicate that twisted willow trees might not live as long in the North as they do in the South, but they are certainly hardy enough to grow in cold regions.

Willows are generally a favourite target for honey fungus and we don't recommend this tree if you have had problems with this in the past.

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.

Read our full terms and conditions here.

Delivery: Our standard delivery charges are:

Small box (orders containing only seedlings or rooted cuttings) = £7.20 (inc VAT) per order. Free delivery for orders over £60 (inc VAT)
Standard box (bareroot plants up to 1.2metres) = £11.40 (inc VAT) per order. Free delivery for orders over £60 (inc VAT)
Large box (pots up to and including 7.5 litres) = £15.00 (inc VAT) per order. Free delivery for orders over £100 (inc VAT)
Trees & hedging (bareroot plants and trees over 1.2 metres in height) = £19.80 (inc VAT) per order.
Orders delivered to Scotland and the Isle of Wight may incur a surcharge (calculated during checkout). This is applicable to ALL orders to these locations.
Pallets (for all orders of root balls, and large orders, a pallet price will be automatically applied at checkout) = £75.00 (inc VAT) per order.
If, for reasons of seasonality an order needs to be split, then we will charge for each delivery. If the whole order was eligible for free P&P then the second of the split orders will be delivered free of charge.

*Surcharges to the Highlands and Islands still apply.

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.
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 in summer 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.

	Buy 11 or more bareroot plants and save

SIZES	1-10	11-50	51-250	251-1000	1001+
60/80 cm Bareroot	Out of Stock £4.38	Out of Stock£3.50	Out of Stock£3.07	Out of Stock£2.85	Out of Stock£2.63
	Prices include VAT(where applicable)

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Salix babylonica / matsudana Tortuosa Saplings. Dragon's Claw Willow

Did You Know?

Bareroot planting is best done between November and April
Bareroot and potted - what's the difference?

Classic Capresse Salad

LATEST VIDEO

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Corkscrew/Twisted Willow Sapling Trees

Salix babylonica pekinensis Tortuosa

MAIDEN BAREROOT

BUSH BAREROOT

Tree Guard, Heavy Duty

From £4.02

Stakes, Tree Planting

From £5.76

Rootgrow

From £6.00

Tree Planting Pack

From £10.19

Salix babylonica / matsudana Tortuosa Saplings. Dragon's Claw Willow

Did You Know?

Bareroot planting is best done between November and April Bareroot and potted - what's the difference?

Classic Capresse Salad

LATEST VIDEO

Sign up!

Bareroot planting is best done between November and April
Bareroot and potted - what's the difference?