Pruning and Propagating a Japanese Dappled Willow – hmm

On my spring task wish-list: make some more Salix integra Hakuri Nishiki.  There’s a willow fence nearby, between some houses and a big-box store.  I would love to make one of those!  Update – the experiment is underway – see how it’s going.

Dappled willows are smaller trees or large shrubs that grow somewhere around 10 feet tall. They could be taller or smaller depending on the soil conditions. Willows can be propagated very easily just by sticking a hardwood branch in soil and keeping it moist, no rooting hormone is needed. Alternately willows can be rooted by placing the branches in a glass of water.  via Pruning and Propagating a Japanese Dappled Willow from The Home Garden: Gardening in the Home Landscape.

I’ve got quite a huge, venerable specimen of a hakuri nishiki hiding my AC unit. A spring-time pruning should provide some new victims specimens.  Since my yard is overwhelmingly heavy clay soil, and it’s the drainage path for a couple-dozen of uphill houses, I have plenty of always-damp spots where I can ‘plant’ some twigs and hope for success.