Twisted Willow Caradoc

A hybrid between the twisted Babylon willow and the white willow (var. vitellina), Salix x sepulcralis Caradoc is a fast-growing, slender, deciduous tree with curiously twisted branches and twigs and a columnar crown if left unpruned. It can be coppiced in winter to limit its size and improve the lovely colour of the canes, green with rose-red tips in spring, and turning orange-yellow in winter. The narrow, lance-shaped leaves, also twisted, emerge green in spring, turning brilliant yellow in autumn before leaf-fall. Particularly good as a specimen planted next to a pond or stream, where it can drink to its heart’s content, but can be planted anywhere with reliably moist, very rich soil. Twisted willow Caradoc does not seem to be affected by salt, so it’s good in a coastal garden; it is also much less prone to die-back than other twisted willows. The coloured canes from coppicing are often used by flower-arrangers.