Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Creating habitat Deep Water Willows doing well.

Pat,

If you want rid of the willows, get some SAFE FOR AQUATIC use herbicide that is labeled to control them.

Are you thinking of keeping some in the shallower areas for structure!

Cmm

Not sure if I want those water drinkers or not, nice to crappie fish around them tho. Might leave a few

Thanks CNM


Pat

The good news about willows is if you take more out than you want, wait just a minute and they will be back.

Mike, I sure have enjoyed your recent activity on the forum lately - guess that may change as soon as this mud dries up and you get back to work...
Been a long time since this much rain in N.E. Texas - visited our ponds Saturday in the rain - NICE!
George

Will the willows that are completely submerged die? Or keep growing?


Pat

When I built my pond in 2011 there were several adult willow trees in the draw that I dammed up to create the pond. They are now standing in five feet of water. Every year a few would die off and as of last year they are all dead.

I consider willows the ultimate character builder. I can pull 100 and feel good about eradicating. Then, I look around and there are more.

Dave those critters have got a root system that is tough to get out. Can't imagine pulling 100 in a day!

If I get to them when they are small, the root system hasn't gotten out of hand. If they are out of the water, I hit them with a mix of Remedy and diesel.

Will they die if water covers them completely?

Nope; maybe if it got really high enough to cut off sunlight they would.

There just ain't no way around it .... Gotta pull them puppies up

djnks, you might have a different species of willow than mine but when my willows flooded, all died except those at or near the bank and waterline. The deeper the water, the quicker they died - over a span of one to four years. If you cut those near the bank and they have access to dirt, they'll continue to grow, putting up new growth all along the tree. You'll have to herbicide that new growth with glyphosate or 2,4-D or both, unless you want a thicket of willows. I had one large tree standing alone in about three feet of water that took around six years to give up.

I think if the water completely submerges the leaves, they will die. If enough leaves stay above water, like the one in your picture, it will survive. Willows grow fast, and often die fast too. All it takes is a short twig on the shoreline in wet mud and air, and you'll start a new tree

Must be a different willow species.
On Google Earth, coordinates 29 41 15N, 91 23 14W will put you on the pond I'm talking about. At the top of the page, clicking on the clock icon with the counterclockwise arrow will show the pond as it was in years past as well as the present day image. Many of the willows at the middle of the pond were totally submerged, while the trees along the northerly, easterly and southerly pond edges were not. All died except for a few along the southerly edge which I cut and sprayed.

The lone tree that I mentioned can be seen near the southwest corner of the south pond in the 2005 image.

In the 2012 image and between the ponds is my truck. That enviably handsome guy to the right rear of the truck is me planting a tree. Yes, I know, I know, but that truly isn't Burt Reynolds. It's really me.