Salix "Kilmarnock"

Hey guys
I planted one of these, winter 22/23, and got lots of catkins in the spring, before it started to leaf out.
This year, for some reason, it has gone straight to leaf, with no catkins.
This winter has been very mild and extremely wet. Is that what has confused it, or do they do this some years?

TIA
Fof

 

That doesn't affect them at all - wet weather. It will already have had the catkins formed when you planted it. It will then have started establishing itself properly through last year, and probably didn't get far enough to form the catkins well for this year, especially if it was drier through the summer.
They don't produce huge amounts of them here anyway, and I think that's generally the case, especially when they get older because they get pruned so much. Usually because they aren't properly staked and fall over!

They're only just starting to leaf up here, but I haven't passed any recently to take a look.

 

I think it could be a pruning problem, that is of course if you have pruned it?
Think they very quickly need it in a year or so.

Got to own up, its not a plant I like, sorry.

 

You and me both @pete
It's often because they don't get properly staked, then they end up at 45 degrees. The pruning is also another problem with them. They often end up like mushrooms, and then just look odd.
I was assuming that, due to the recent planting, it wouldn't have been pruned, but that would certianly prevent catkins forming if it was done to any extent.

 

Mine's a droopy, lop-sided, malshaped mushroom, for the reasons stated above! I've never liked it, but it was a present from someone I cared about years ago, and now I can't bear to part with it! And no, it's never had catkins! At least it's in a fairly unnoticeable spot in the great outdoors.

 

There's one quite near me that's touching the ground with the canopy @Tinkerton . It's a wonder it's still rooted into the ground!

There's one further along from it though, and they've just pruned it all right back to about a foot from the main trunk, and it's developed a quite interesting, gnarled shape. It would be useful as a support for a climber too. With a few lower growing plants round the foot, it could be used as a spot to hang bird feeders, or just as an interesting focal point.

 

Yes, mine's beautifully 'gnarly' too, @fairygirl ! Years of chopping hard back and it's looking almost - I said 'almost' - sculptural! I don't have a photo, sorry. Don't want to go giving it ideas above it's station

 

@Tinkerton

I think it's a case of removing individual stems right back to keep the shape. They do get quite big as well.

 

Yes, my thoughts, never having grown one is that pruning should be done after the catkins are finished, giving the tree time to make new growth in summer which should "flower" the following spring.
Isn't it basically a weeping goat willow grafted onto an upright stem?

 

No, @pete. I trimmed 3 or 4 that were close to the ground, but only a few inches. I did notice that the top didn't put on as much growth as I had anticipated. I just put that down to it getting settled in during its first growing season in the ground. As you suggest, @fairygirl. Great minds think alike.

I never considered that it might delay developing flower buds, (which require a lot of energy, to produce and grow).

It was staked with a single stake for the the first winter and removed after about 6 months. This winter it stood up quite happily, to the strong winds we had.

@pete. I needed something a that point which had height (about 2m), but "narrow". Any tree/shrub tall enough to drop in would be too wide or would soon grow too tall and wide.
I like willows and I saw this, 1.7m tall, as a perfect drop in that I could live with, at this point in time.
If I at some point find something else that will drop in there as the garden evolves I could always replace it. I'd love a liquidamber there but 150% not going to ever happen.

Wow. In the time it has taken me to slowely right this, there have been a lot of replies. Lets go see what the new comments are.

 

Slow growing and narrow, I like golden Irish yew, but then we all have our likes a things we like less. Avoided dislike there.
Yes Liquidamber would probably get very big.

 

I had one in a previous garden, but I moved out and I'm not sure if it's still there. They
re very popular up here as specimens for small front gardens. I don't think I've seen an upright one yet! Maybe that gnarly one, but it's a rarity. They need the double angled staking method.

The problem is that they're grafted @Fof, so if you prune out the tops too much, it doesn't really change the size, but if you cut ends off, they'll branch, which is why so many of them look pretty bad.
It will get quite a spread on it though, so it may end up being too wide for your space due to that branching effect when you trim them.
I'm not sure it'll be happy without being staked though, especially at that height. If there's support from other planting around it, it might be ok though. There are upright cherries - Amanagowa is readily available. Perhaps that would suit later if the willow doesn't? Many of the Amelanchiers are more upright, and they can be pruned without losing the shape and habit.

I can't remember what the graft is onto @pete, but you may well be right about the goat willow.

 

Yes, but a 2m Irish yew would NOT be cheap.
I have 4 yews in the mixed hedge, but they ain't anything like 2 m, more like 200cm.

The top is derived from a flat growing Salix caprica, goat willow, mutation that was discovered in the 19 cent. up in Scotland and was propagated on somewhere in Kilmarnock.
They are generally grafted on to an upright S. caprica stock.
I have heard but not come across much info on a female form "Weeping Sally" that is grown. No real interest to growers, though.

 

200 cm is 2 metres @Fof

 

Duhhhhhh!