Weeping Willow seed

Sorry in advance for double posting, but I waited a week with no answer. Does anyone have knowledge about Weeping willow seed or these companies?

Previous posting:
This week I was browsing through the net looking for Weeping Willow seed. I was led to EBay (of course) and I found some offered by a seller specialty*shoppe!. 120098233689

When I read the description, the tree was listed as Baccharis glutinosa. (kind of junky compared to a weeping willow) I contacted the seller to ask why the weeping willow wasn't a Salix sp. It took a day or so to get a response. They told me it was indeed an error and they had fixed it. Now there's a new auction for the same stuff, but this time it's called Salix....sounds fishy

I tried finding them in the Garden Watchdog under the 2 names they had attached with their email response (Specialtyharvest.com and Seedstop.com) nothing. Then their zip 78023. nothing.

Their info says they've been doing business for 5 years and they have over 9000 feedbacks on Ebay. Anyone heard of them??

Thanks
Barbara

I don't know anything about that vendor but I can recommend Bluestem Nursery for Willows. You can buy cuttings or plants. They root so easily from cutting that I wouldn't even bother with buying a rooted plant.

All you need to do is stick the thing in a pot and keep the soil moist.

They have a super selection.

Here's a link to Bluestem's entry in the Watchdog: http://davesgarden.com/gwd/c/2504/
A few other willow cutting sources to consider:

US:
Willow Dreams: http://davesgarden.com/gwd/c/3624/
English Basketry: http://davesgarden.com/gwd/c/6055/

UK:
Willows: http://davesgarden.com/gwd/c/6054/
West Wale Willows: http://davesgarden.com/gwd/c/3625/

I see them at Wal-Mart garden centers by the dozens.

This message was edited Mar 29, 2007 12:48 PM

If I remember correctly, willow seed is very short lived. Willow seed must be planted immediately after ripening for germination to take place (the seed needs to land in a moist place as soon as it falls from the tree.) I have no doubt that someone is selling willow (Salix) seed on eBay, but the seed is most certainly not viable.

Do you have a stream or lake near you? Weeping willows are NOT good trees for a normal, suburban yard. Willows are incredibly fast growing trees with brittle branches and invasive roots. WW is a great tree to plant by the edge of a lake or stream where it has access to all of the moisture it wants, but WW is not a good choice for the average sized yard.
My .02
Mike

Mike's right. Willow seed is VERY short-lived. I am proud (sort of) to say that I did get a seed from one of my little artic willows to sprout, but it didn't last long unfortunately.

I am not sure there is such a thing as seed for a real weeping willow anyway. I am sure someone here knows though.

And here it is today. Its about to go from that multi-trunked look to a single trunk look after I prune it soon.
Will

If you wanted to come to KCMO I could give you a cutting or cuttings of Weeping Willow.
I put a small stick in an old laundry jug 3 years ago from a Weeping Willow in a park, now I have a tree around 10 feet tall!
I agree, cuttings of Weeping Willow are the way to go, much easier and cheaper than seed.
Here is a photo of a Weeping Willow cutting soon after I potted it, the following Spring when it leafed out good and the next post is it today. Thats the tree that I plan to get cuttings from, its a nice Weeping Willow specimen.
Will

Oops, pretend the blue laundry jug post photo is first!
Will

If I remember correctly, weeping willow is a garden origin hybrid, which means it might not produce viable seed at all, and if it does, it probably wouldn't come true anyway.

Scott

Yeah, I'd think buying Weeping Willow seed would be a gamble.
I read in Dirr's Woody Propagation book that no Willow seeds have dormancy, and must be planted within 12 to 24 hours of collecting, and collecting has to be done at the right time. The book calls it Salix X babylonica, a hybrid. If by chance you did get it to grow, it might not be a Weeping Willow, from seed. Send me an SASE and I'll send you a cutting or cuttings if you like. I read that the best time to get cuttings from Willows are after leaf drop and before leafing out, so I think Nov. to March, but I really don't think it matters, I believe I grew mine in Summer. Here is the parent tree that mine is from, I think I got the cuttings initially, at the same time. That tree is no longer there in the park by the lake. Maybe it succumbed to Father Time, it was looking a bit haggard back then, it looked like it was dying from the top down maybe.
Will
edited for typo



This message was edited Mar 29, 2007 7:55 PM

Wow, you guys know your stuff.

I went to Rural King (a great store in our area) and bought a nice looking 8-10 ft Niobe for $17.99 and planted it yesterday. Funny thing is the same day I received an order from Gurneys that included a 4 ft weeping willow "twig" for over $20...live and learn

Will, I'd love to have a cutting. I'll send you a dmail. You sound like an expert. BTW are you a Royals or a Cardinals fan?? Gotta love Albert.

Treelover3...We live on a farm and our yard is about 3 acres that butts up to one of our soybean/corn fields that has been ditched so that there's an area that get lot's of run off. I've been saving the spot especially for a weeping willow.

My crazy son has always wanted ww's in our yard and had a wild hair to try them from seed, so I thought I'd try to find some.

I take it the company(s) I wrote about is full of kaka then? It was amazing that the genus changed with my mentioning their error.

Thanks everyone

Barbara

Hehe.. thanks, but I'm not really an expert, just some reading, experience and much interest does wonders I suppose. I know some people trained in all aspects of horticulture related stuff, I know only a fraction. I am honored to know people that really know their stuff on the matters.

Sure, that would be fine. I'd gladly send cutting(s) to you. You can also email me, my email address is at my homepage which is linked to in my profile.

Definitely a Royals fan. I know several Cardinals fans, we have like a rivalry, except when the Royals ain't in it, then I'm a Cardinals fan, same with the Chiefs and Rams.

Albert Pujols went to the same high school as me. He graduated several years after me. I tell ya, he is the best thing to ever come out of that high school! Well, besides me of course! Just kidding!
Will
p.s. Wanna see part of my 33 foot long flower/small tree bed? Its also got a Red-Tipped Photinia (can be seen in the photo, but not well) and three Crape Myrtles in it (1 Dynamite and 2 Acomas). I took this photo today.

It still don't have enuff soil in it. I think I'll plant some tomatos and other vegetables in the empty places.

You gotta be lieing! You went to school with Albert?? Spring training has been rough on him. At least Edmonds is back to help keep La Rousa sober...lol!

For some reason I can't open "Will's Page" Is it just me??

See, Will? It's not what you know, it's who you know...

Hi ion, he went to Fort Osage H.S. where I attended but we didn't attend school at the same time. I graduated ten years before he did.
I wonder if LaRousa keeps a flask on him in the dugout? Hope he took a decent mugshot!
You can't go to Wills Page? The difficulty might only be temporary, try again later.
You might try it in a separate window. Its not an obscene site, no profanity, and I'm not selling anything, you can however sign my guestbook if you wish.
My email is inventedwheel@yahoo.com

Hi VV, so thats where that old adage comes from?!
Its not quite like that for me. I rarely lean on my much more astute acquaintences for knowledge. If I can't answer a question or help someone with my own books, knowledge etc. I will gratefully pass, I know my limitations. I don't feel uppity at all that I am acquainted with anyone more knowledgeable.

The same as I am honored to know you.
I have much respect for those that have spent a lifetime learning all they can about horticulture.
Will