Goat Willow (Salix caprea) bare root tree saplings/hedge plants

Willow - Goat (Salix caprea)

£0.99

10% off Orders over £1000+VAT

15% off Orders over £2000+VAT

Minimum order value (all plants) is £300+VAT

Free Delivery over £300+VAT excl Highlands and Islands

Please order plants in multiples of 25

Goat willow (Salix caprea) is

- Suitable as a woodland tree, woodland shrub or windbreak

- Native

- Deciduous

- Good in wet areas

- Wildlife friendly - particularly as an egg laying habitat for the iconic Purple Emperor butterfly

- Safe to plant near livestock (non-toxic)

Buy with confidence - read our customer reviews.

The specifications shown below are our normal range but we often have additional options. If there is something that you are looking for, it's often worth contacting us.

Please contact us if you would prefer to order on the phone or have any questions or to discuss a discount for larger quantities.

Our range of Goat Willow bare root plants (Salix caprea)

We have Goat Willow bare root plants in several specifications and heights. The 1+0 specification plants are seedlings (often called whips) which were grown from seed sown in the spring and are sold during the following November to April months ie they are 1 year old. We have Goat Willow whips in several heights.

Goat Willow (Salix caprea) Summary

A small rounded pioneer tree (see our blog on pioneer trees) or large shrub is generally planted as a hedge or windbreak near water where it will suck up moisture effectively as well as tolerating standing in water and whilst moisture loving, it will also grow on dry soil. It is very fast growing and can be coppiced to produce timber for fires or to make charcoal. Unlike most willows the wood is not flexible enough to be woven. It has deep spreading roots and does well on steep slopes.

The most appealing aspect of this lovely tree is the pussy willow catkins in spring, thick and padded like kitten’s paws (pussies), which appear before the leaves in early spring.

The name "caprea" means goat and it is thought it derives from it being used as goat fodder and indeed it can still be used for that purpose.

Soil and situation

Goat willow is a water loving tree/shrub and is ideal near ponds, streams or rivers, or in wetlands and bogs. Its other use is to hold the soil in place on steep embankments and it will grow well there even in dry soil. It will grow in semi shade but prefers to grow in a sunny situation, and in any soil type other than very acidic or very alkaline.

Leaves, flowers and fruit

Normally willows have long slim leaves but the goat willow has oval dark green leaves with a grey felt underneath. Male trees produce pinkish grey fat catkins up to 2” long which turn yellow when ripe with pollen very early in the spring and are an important early source of pollen for bees and other pollinating insects. They are vital for bumblebee queens coming out of hibernation. Female trees produce long green catkins.

Eventual height and growth rate

If left unpruned, goat willow would grow to about 8m in height but it is often coppiced to the ground every 5 years and it very quickly regrows with long straight stems and even larger catkins.

Also known as European pussy willow and great sallow. Salicaceae family.

Free Delivery

For deliveries of orders over £300 + VAT, (which is our minimum order value) we have free delivery to all mainland areas nationwide. If you are in the Scottish Highlands or any of the Islands, please email us or call us and we will quote you a delivery charge which we will subsidise.

All orders are despatched on pallets and will be delivered to the kerbside. We will email you to tell you when your order has been despatched and that email will contain a link so that you can track your delivery.

You can request a specific delivery date when you place your order and we will do our very best to accommodate that date but cannot be held responsible if we do not meet it.

Collections from Ross-on-Wye

You can collect your plants by arrangement with our office team. Please ring us on 01989 552028 to agree a collection date. The postcode for collections is HR9 7TF.

As a trade nursery, we normally despatch stock unbagged (packed horizontally on pallets) but we can offer two bagging options.

Bagging Options

We have two options for despatching plants in bags (you do not need to have them bagged but it is advisable if there is any delay in planting and where you have large quantities, delay in planting some is inevitable).

- Very heavy duty black bags - normally used by farmers, landowners, landscapers etc

- Co-extruded bags which are white on the outside, to reflect sunlight, and black inside, to retain moisture on the roots - normally used by foresters.

In both cases, there is a considerable labour cost to us in putting stock into bags, and then the air in the bags takes up a considerable amount of space on the pallet which means that we get many fewer plants onto a pallet compared with unbagged stock eg for 1+0 seedlings instead of approx. 10,000 plants per pallet of unbagged stock, we'd only get approx. 5,000 plants per pallet if they are bagged. There's also a significant labour cost in putting plants into bags compared with loose packing on a pallet (which is the normal method for nursery to nursery sales). Given that we pay the delivery cost on most orders, supplying stock in bags is a significant extra cost for us for some customers and hence we make a modest charge.

You can specifically request black or white bags on the website after you add plants to your shopping basket. Here is a link to the page Bagging Service for bare root plants for farms and forestry – rjtreesandhedging. Please order the same quantity as the number of plants you are buying - the pricing for bagging is per plant rather than per bag.