Salix alba Aurea - White Willow

Salix alba 'Aurea' is a white willow selected for its magnificent deciduous foliage, yellow-green in summer, golden yellow in autumn, and its young golden wood. When trimmed into a bush, this small deciduous tree can be maintained in proportions more suited to modern gardens. A willow always imparts a poetic ambiance to the garden. This one is incredibly bright, stunning in landscaping within wet areas.

The 'Aurea' white willow is thought by some experts to be a hybrid of Salix fragilis and bears a strong resemblance to Salix sachalinensis 'Golden Sunshine'. Its ancestor, Salix alba, originates from the wetlands of the northern hemisphere, particularly in Europe, temperate Asia, and North Africa. It is a highly adaptable and very fast-growing tree. It belongs to the salicaceae family and the Salix genus, which comprises no fewer than 300 species distributed across the cold regions of the northern hemisphere. This species is dioecious, meaning that female and male flowers are borne on distinct subjects.

Salix alba 'Aurea' shows moderately fast growth, or even a bit slow. When untrimmed, it exhibits a generally spreading habit, with a short trunk and a wide, rounded crown. Ultimately, it will reach about 4-5 m in height and 3 m in width. Severe and regular pruning, either as a bush or as a pollarded tree, every 3 years will help to reduce its height. It will then form a large, dense clump. The long, soft, and flexible branches are golden when young, then turn grey-brown. They bear leaves that are 11-12 cm long, narrow, and lanceolate in shape. Both sides of the leaf are silky, the upper side being shiny and the underside more silvery. When the tree is grown in sunlight, their colour is a slightly greenish yellow in spring. The young shoots are often tinged with orange. The foliage becomes increasingly yellow in summer and takes on a magnificent golden yellow hue before falling in autumn. Flowering occurs in April-May, coinciding with the appearance of the young leaves. The 3 to 5 cm long catkins are yellowish-green. The root system of this willow, being both taprooted and spreading, is perfectly suited to deep and unstable soils. For this reason, it is advisable to keep this willow away from pipes and drains. The white willow is also a medicinal plant, with its bark being the first source of aspirin. A wild Salix alba can reach the venerable age of 100 years.

The 'Aurea' white willow should be planted in isolation, at the centre of a large border, in a hedge, or at the edge of a body of water. Its golden foliage is valuable for bringing light into a more sombre arrangement, for example at the edges of the countryside. It is a bush of wet, calcareous to acidic soils. Less known, this willow tolerates both seasonal drought and excessive moisture. Some plants that can accompany it are dogwoods Cornus sanguinea and C. sericea 'Baileyi' with colourful wood, Miscanthus, the coyote willow…

Advice: Collect fallen leaves in autumn and burn them if the tree shows black spots (anthracnose) or yellow-orange spots (rust) during its growing season. Once all the leaves have fallen, treat with Bordeaux mixture.