Goat Willow Hedging | Salix caprea
Bring the wildlife flocking
Grown by John
South Downs National Park
Perfectly happy plants, or your money back
Specialist overnight plant delivery
The highlights
- Fluffy catkins and bright green foliage
- Great natural screening - grows anywhere
- Average growth rate - 20-40cm per year
- Grows up to 8m or keep trimmed at 1-5m
Description
- This deciduous native hedge is hugely valuable to wildlife and has been naturalized in Britain since Roman times
- Fluffy silver catkins appear on the bare branches in early spring, followed by bright green oval shaped leaves
- A fully hardy, moderately growing plant which will reach a height of approx 8m but can easily be maintained at 1-4m
- Goat Willow will grow well in all soil types and sites, even exposed, windy areas and wet or chalk soil
- The catkins are highly attractive to bees and this hedge is also a favourite with many species of butterflies and moths
- The name Goat Willow probably comes from an illustration in Hieronymus Bock's Herbal, published in 1546. The picture shows a goat grazing on the tree which seems to have inspired its naming almost 200 years later - goats have no special preference for this tree and will pretty much eat anything!
What To Expect
Supplied as:
Height on arrival:
Eventual height:
Eventual spread:
Time to first crop:
Flower colour:
Habit:
Hardiness:
Rootstock:
Spacing:
How To Grow
Good pest and disease resistance
Can be affected by aphids, caterpillars or rust
Water when newly planted
Water establishing plants during dry spells for at least a year after planting.
Full sun
Does best where the hedge will receive at least 6 hours of sunlight every day during summer and spring.
Any well drained, fertile soil
Will tolerate less than perfect conditions but prefers well drained, loamy soils. If your soil is heavy or sandy, mix in some perlite or fine horticultural grit when planting, to improve drainage.
Feeding not required
A low maintenance plant which gets its nutrients from the soil
Planting Calendar
- Best time to plant
- Harvest
- Flower
South Downs National Park
Meet John
110 years' expertise free with every plant
Straight from the capable hands of our shrub specialist John to your garden, you can be sure that each bush, hedge and plant is grown to last. Nurtured in the fields of the South Downs and professionally pruned for the best shape, these hardy feature plants will be adding structure, colour and variety to your garden for many years to come.
What customers say about us
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Growing with Roots
Good to know
Our plants are grown in the UK
Specialist UK growers we know and trust grow your plants the traditional way, with organic fertiliser and biological pest control. They pick only the healthiest plants for you, professionally pruning them so that they’ll grow strong and well shaped.
Our plants are delivered overnight
Your plants are sent to you fresh from the field in our plastic free box that’s specially designed to hold them tight, then securely delivered by specialist plant couriers - straight from the grower to your garden within 24 hours.
We're here to help at every step
We want your plants to have a long and healthy life. Expect easy-to-follow grow guides and videos devised by our team of experts.
Perfect plants, guaranteed
We’re confident that you’ll be delighted with your new plants. Need help? Alice and her team are here to guarantee you’re perfectly happy.
Learn from our experts
Is My Garden Suitable for a Willow Tree?
Digging deep to answer your questions
How do I know I'm getting quality plants?
All of our plants are grown in specialist nurseries with the highest standards of plant care and sustainability. We guarantee you'll love them as much as we do! Don't just take our word for it - we've got thousands of great reviews on Trustpilot.
When will I get my plants?
The delivery timescale for each plant is on the web page (near the 'add to basket's button). You'll receive a dispatch email with an exact delivery date once your plants are on their way, so you can get the garden ready.
How will my plants be packed and delivered?
We send all of our orders through a courier network designed to handle plants. Specialist equipment ensures that no plants will be damaged during the packing process and every order is carefully finished and checked by plant-loving humans. Your plants will arrive in the most sustainable packaging possible with minimal to no plastic used.
Where do you deliver?
We deliver to anywhere in Mainland UK for our standard delivery cost. We are able to deliver most plants to Highlands and non UK mainland however this will be at an additional cost. This will be calculated at the checkout. Please note, deliveries to these locations will take longer. Unfortunately, we are not able to deliver to Northern Ireland at present.
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One of our trusted team will get back to you via email
What customers say about us
We do our best to provide you the best experience ever
Best plants you will ever get online
I have ordered plants from them twice this year. They arrived well packaged, on time and looked strong and healthy. I feel the staff from Roots plants deal with their plants and customers with passion and care. I can’t wait to order again, price is good as well.
Peter Mawer
Highly recommended all round
Delivered quickly, perfectly packaged and the tree was in excellent condition. Really healthy and taken to the garden with no problems. Can't recommend highly enough. 5 stars isn't enough!
John Harris
Satisfied customer
Unlike other online sellers, this company are well ahead in the quality stakes. My plant arrived promptly as per their promise and the plant was much more established and healthy than I had expected. It’s the second time I have ordered from them and I have faith in their promise. Excellent service.
Karen McEwan
A really good quality tree
A really good quality tree, delivered on time and very well packaged. But the emailed planting advice and supporting information was what really impressed me. Thoroughly recommended.
Martin C Simmons
Exceptional quality
The quality of the plants was exceptional, unlike ones I have had before from local garden centres. Thank you so much. I will definitely be using you again.
Sara Bradley
Marvelous!
Marvelous service, great plants and fast delivery. Very useful information on how to care for the plants I bought. Easy to use website that makes it far too easy to overindulge in fabulous plants😂🌱
Cheryl Mae Owen