Salix babylonica - Babylon Willow - Weeping Willow

General Information Common Name  Babylon Willow, Weeping Willow Scientific Name  Salix babylonica Sun Tolerance  Full Sun Height  20 - 25 m (66-82 ft) Spread  10 - 15 m (33 - 50 ft) Growth Rate  Fast Bloom Time  Spring Color  Green, Flower Color  Yellow Type  Tree Native  USA, Asia, Europe.

Classification Kingdom  Plantae – Plants Subkingdom  Tracheobionta – Vascular plants Superdivision Spermatophyta – Seed plants Division  Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants Class  Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons Subclass  Dilleniidae Order  Salicales Family  Salicaceae – Willow family Genus  Salix L. – Willow Species  S. babylonica

Salix babylonica commonly known as Babylon Willow also known as Weeping Willow or Peking Willow. It is native to dry areas of northern China, but cultivated for millennia elsewhere in Asia, being traded along the Silk Road to southwest Asia and Europe. 

Salix babylonica - Babylon Willow - Weeping Willow

S. babylonica is a medium- to large-sized deciduous tree. It grows 20–25 m (66–82 ft) in height. It grows rapidly, but has a short lifespan, between 40 to 75 years. The shoots are yellowish-brown, with small buds. The leaves are alternate and spirally arranged, narrow and the color is light green. They are 4-16 cm long and 0.5-2 cm broad, with finely serrate margins and long culminate tips, and they become a gold-yellow color in autumn. It blooms in early spring. The flowers are also deciduous that arranged in catkins, yellow color, with the male and female catkins on separate trees. 

S. babylonica, especially its pendulous-branched form, has been introduced into many other areas, including Europe and the southeastern United States, but beyond China, it has not generally been as successfully cultivated as some of its hybrid derivatives, being sensitive to late-spring frosts. In the more humid climates of much of Europe and eastern North America, it is susceptible to a canker disease.

This weeping willow can be a spectacular specimen at the edge of a pond with its branches gracefully weeping down to touch the water, however, it is often very difficult to site this tree in a residential landscape. It is a popular ornamental tree in northern China, and is also grown for wood production and shelter belts there, being particularly important around the oases of the Gobi Desert, protecting agricultural land from desert winds.

Salix babylonica - Babylon Willow - Weeping Willow

Babylon Willow Leaves

Leaves of Babylon Willow

Leaves of Salix babylonica

Babylon Willow Flowers

Flowers of Babylon Willow

Babylon Willow Flowers before bloom

Flowers of Salix babylonica 

Babylon Willow Bark

Salix babylonica Bark

Salix babylonica - Babylon Willow - Weeping Willow

Salix babylonica - Babylon Willow - Weeping Willow

Salix babylonica - Babylon Willow - Weeping Willow

Babylon Willow reached to water