Cutting Back the Pussy Willows
Lots of cutting and pruning continues at my farm.
Spring officially begins in less than two weeks. It's always exciting and refreshing to discover a few signs of the season - snowdrops, crocus and the soft, velvety paws of the pussy willow, Salix discolor. After purchasing my farm, I decided to plant an entire mixed-variety pussy willow grove in an area behind my main greenhouse - at the moist edge of the wetlands. Every few years, my outdoor grounds crew gives them all a heavy pruning to keep them productive and healthy. They were heavily pruned in 2012 and in 2017, and now it’s time to do it again.
Enjoy these photos.
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- My pussy willow grove is located in a field behind my greenhouse, where there is lots of room for them to grow and flourish.
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- Pussy willow is a common name given to many smaller species of the genus Salix when their furry, velvety catkins are young. Salix discolor is the American pussy willow.
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- Pussy willows can grow up to 20-feet or even more when left unpruned.
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- Pussy willows grow in almost any kind of moist soil and thrive best in full sun.
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- Pussy willows start blooming in late winter. We already cut many beautiful pussy willow branches for arrangements last week, so this week I decided it was a good time to give them a good, heavy pruning.
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- There are two techniques to use when pruning a pussy willow tree. Coppice pruning is severe cutting done every few years. It is meant to encourage the pussy willow plant to produce many long, straight catkins-filled branches. Shape pruning can be done more frequently to create a full and pretty bush. Here, Chhewang starts by pruning older branches that are thicker and grey in color.
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- He uses sharp pruners and makes cuts above the nodes.
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- Pete works on another pussy willow using loppers. Branches of pussy willows that are already crossing should be removed. They shade each other, reducing the number of catkins.
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- And here, Chhewang uses a lightweight hand saw. I prefer pruning to be done by hand instead of by power tools – it is a slower process but provides cleaner cuts and a more detailed and prettier finish.
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- Here is one of Chhewang’s cuts. Pruning also helps prevent disease, fungus and insect problems.
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- New shoots will be encouraged to emerge from the roots as “suckers.”
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- Dead branches are cut down to the bottom.
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- Some pussy willows have very large, furry catkins.
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- While other pussy willow varieties have smaller catkins. This is a purple heirloom variety. It has attractive blonde bark, thin grassy stems, and lots of small dark purple catkins.
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- Pussy willow trunks can be either single or clustered with flexible branches and branchlets.
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- The idea behind pruning pussy willows is to promote growth – to increase the size of the shrubs laterally while restricting their upward development.
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- Severe pruning also results in larger, more full catkins, so it is a very useful chore.
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- Some of the younger pussy willows still had some catkins growing.
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- Pussy willows are very easy to propagate. And, while they don’t take up a lot of space to grow, their roots can be quite invasive, so don’t plant them near water lines or septic systems.
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- Chhewang stands back to assess where he will start cutting.
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- As branches are removed, Carlos carries them to an area above the wetlands. Once complete, the cut branches will be chipped.
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- Pussy willow is common throughout the southern half of Canada and the north-central and northeastern portions of the United States.
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- The crew has cut a lot in one day – some of these branches will also be used to make more arrangements. Here, one can see my glass vegetable greenhouse in the distance.
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- Carlos and Pete stopped for a quick photo.
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- Here are several pruned pussy willows. The crew cut most of them down to about six-feet tall. It takes a lot of time to prune all these pussy willows, but they grow fast and will be even better and more prolific next year.
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- Here is a wider view of the grove – it looks great.
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- If you saw my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48, you may have seen the pussy willow arrangements I made last weekend. This is one of two arrangements I made for my home – more than 50 branches in each urn. I am looking forward to making even more.
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