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Salix integra flamingo
Sue567
Posts: 4
Hi my Salix integra flamingo is looking spindly and going brown I bought it only a couple of months ago. I water it well and it's planted in a pot does anyone have any suges pleased. Also could anyone advise when to prune and how much to cut please. I am a beginner lol. Thank you
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I never think they look well Sue!
Sorry
If it's potted, watering is the vital thing. All willows thrive in plenty of water, so I expect that could be the main issue. If they get dried out, it can tricky to get them rehydrated properly - the water tends to run through. You think you're watering plenty, but it's not actually staying where it should. The best way to resolve that is to submerge the whole pot in a bucket of water until it's fully moistened.
What did you use to plant it in? If it's only in compost, that will contribute to drying out as it doesn't hold water well enough. A soil based compost, or ordinary soil from the garden with some compost added, is the best thing to use fro anything shrubby/woody if it's going to be potted long term.
Have you taken a look at the soil to see if it's too dry lower down? If you stick a finger in and it's only damp on the top inch or so, that could be your reason. Ironically, going brown and 'dead' looking can be a sign of either too dry or too wet, and it then depends on the plant as to which of those is a problem.
Hot dry conditions can also cause leaf scorch and browning, so it would help if you have a pic to let us see exactly how it looks.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I don't know if this helps it's very spindly and everytime a new shoot comes through it dies. I didn't know if it needed cutting as my other one new shoots are coming through all over. always seem to pick the wrong plants ?
I don't think that looks too bad Sue!
I'd say it looks like it's a bit squashed into where it's located though. How big a pot is it in too? It might be struggling for enough nutrients and water if the pot's on the small side. It looks a fairly substantial size of plant, so it would need a fairly big pot. They need a bit of shelter from harsh winds, so is your other one in a slightly better location? Like many variegated plants, they're not quite as tough as non variegated varieties.
Did it have the colouring earlier in the year - they have pinky foliage initially, then green and cream , before gradually fading to green before turning yellow again in autumn and dropping the leaves. The stems do change colour as well.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I think we brought it after that but will try bigger pots also is it best to prune in the spring ? Thank you
I don't think they really need pruning - except if they get a bit big for the space they're in. It's more of a tidying up type of prune. I'd tidy in summer if it's necessary - otherwise you lose the colour of the emerging foliage in spring, which is the main reason people buy them.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Just another thought Sue - you could probably prune quite hard in winter to get a lot of new spring growth, as that's when you get the pinky colour. A trim now and again keeps it tidy, but hard pruning is often ideal with this type of plant as it's grown for it's coloured foliage. Plenty of sun is good for the colour too.
You can probably experiment a bit with it - but as it's also in a pot, pruning will help to keep it contained. Remember to refresh the soil it's in each year too, to replace nutrients, but water is the most important thing for any willow
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Thank you so much for that I will do that hopefully next year they will look better ?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.