Austree Hybrid Willow

Description

Hybrid “Austree” Willows is a deciduous, fast-growing shade or windbreak tree that can grow 6-10 ft per year and after 7 years it tops out at 40 ft. No competition from grass and weeds. Adequate moisture is necessary for rapid growth.

One row planted 5 to 10 ft apart will give an effective windbreak, screen, and snow catch in just a couple of years. Our favorite spacing in good soil is a double row spaced 8 ft apart in the row and 10 ft between rows. With our 8 x 10 ft spacing, we show a 30% reduction in the wind during the winter with no leaves. They get leaves in early April and hold them until mid-November here in Iowa. They offer a great windbreak during this period. More rows with wider spacing would be even better. A 5-6 ft potted tree will usually be 10 ft tall by the fall of the first year it is in the ground. We sell and plant potted Austrees anytime the ground is not frozen (March-December).

The branches are very flexible and not brittle like other willows so we rarely see any branch breaking in high winds or ice storms. They do not spread by suckers or seed like other willows can.

At this time the long-term life of these plants is not known but we have seen some over 25 years old and they still look good. I always suggest planting evergreen trees on the inside of the Austrees so you have better windbreak protection in the winter and long term. Keep any Austrees at least 20 ft from any other windbreak trees to avoid competition for light and moisture. We have shown a 20% faster growth on evergreens planted inside of the Austrees in a windbreak. It appears that the Austrees, with their leaves on in the early spring, help keep the strong spring winds off of the new growth, protecting the evergreens from wind damage.

We also like to plant an Austree 6 ft from the last evergreen in our windbreak rows and some in the middle of our newly planted windbreak. The buck deer in the fall (Sep- Dec.) will first come into your windbreak and “attack” with their horns these 8ft tall flexible trees and destroy them instead of your valuable evergreens. The following spring and every spring for 5 years, we cut the Austrees off 1 ft from the ground and they will re-grow and be ready in the fall for the next round of buck deer rubs, do this every year. After the evergreens are 10 ft+ tall you can cut off the Austrees used for deer protection, in the fall at ground level, apply roundup to the stump and remove the above-ground part from your windbreak. No reason to remove the roots as they will rot away in just a couple of years.