--- title: Weeping Willow in Reno and Carson City | Tree Guide url: https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/weeping-willow/ business: Battle Born Tree Service address: 6301 US Highway 50 East, Carson City, NV 89701 phone: 775.232.8243 hours: Office Monday-Friday 8:30 am-5:00 pm; phones answered seven days a week; 24-hour emergency service credentials: ISA Certified Arborist WE-11728A on staff; Nevada Business License # 20131580674; fully insured type: Tree service (removal, crane work, pruning, stump grinding, defensible space, snow removal, firewood) --- - [Home](https://battleborntreeservice.com/) - [Tree guide](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/) - Weeping willow # Weeping willow Weeping willow is the graceful, drooping, fast-growing tree that wants a lot of water, and in the dry Reno and Carson City valleys it survives only beside ditches, ponds and heavily watered lawns. Its wood is weak, its roots go looking for water in pipes and septic systems, and big old trees drop limbs. - **Botanical name:** Salix babylonica and hybrids - **Type:** Deciduous tree, fast growing, short lived - **Form:** Broad crown with long, drooping branchlets - **Water:** Streamside tree; not drought tolerant (USFS, for willows such as black willow) - **Wood:** Weak and brittle - **Hardiness:** Zones 6b to 7b across the service area Willows are streamside trees. A willow in a yard has usually been put next to something wet, and when that water changes the tree reacts fast. ## How do you identify a weeping willow? Long, slender, drooping branchlets hang nearly to the ground, with narrow, pointed leaves that are green above and paler beneath. The trunk is short, with deeply furrowed gray-brown bark, and the crown is broad and rounded. Willows leaf out early in spring and hold green late in fall. - Long drooping branchlets - Narrow, pointed leaves - Short, thick trunk dividing low - Early leaf-out in spring ## Where does it grow here? Anywhere there is steady water: along the Truckee River in Reno and Sparks (4,400 to 4,500 feet), the Carson River and ditches in the Carson Valley and Dayton (4,400 to 4,900 feet), pond edges and heavily irrigated lawns. In zones 6b to 7b the cold is not the limit; water is. The nearest NOAA stations record about 7 to 9 inches of precipitation a year. Above about 6,000 feet, willows are mostly shrubby native types by creeks, not planted weepers. ## What goes wrong with weeping willow? The Forest Service describes black willow, a close relative, as growing at its healthiest at or below water level and not drought tolerant, with whole stands dying when water tables drop. It also describes slender, easily detached twigs, weak wood and shallow, lateral roots that leave the tree vulnerable to wind and breakage, and calls it short lived. Those findings are for black willow, not for weeping willow itself; weeping willows in yards show similar weak wood and water-seeking roots, which is why an arborist should look at a large one near a house or a sewer line. In a yard that translates to dead tops when irrigation changes, large limbs that drop, trees that blow over in wind, and roots that travel toward water. Sewer lines, septic tanks, drain lines and pools are all sources of water. See [root and trunk decay](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/root-and-trunk-decay/) and the [roots guide](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/tree-roots-sidewalks-sewer-lines/). ## What does an arborist check on a willow? We look at the base and the roots near the surface for decay, at how many stems the crown has, and at what the roots are close to. We also ask where the tree gets its water, because a willow whose ditch has been piped or whose lawn irrigation changed can decline for years before it fails. ## Pruning timing and when removal is the answer Dead and hazardous limbs can come off at any time. Otherwise, late winter, while dormant, is the usual time for deciduous trees. Willows tolerate pruning, and removing deadwood and reducing the longest limbs lowers breakage risk. Topping is not pruning; see [why topping is not pruning](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/why-tree-topping-is-not-pruning/). Removal is usual for a tree with a dead crown, trunk decay, a lean toward a house, or roots in a pipe, septic tank or foundation drain. Large willows are [large tree removals](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/large-tree-removal/), some with a crane. Willows sprout from stumps, so ask about [stump grinding](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/stump-grinding/). A certified arborist assesses the job on a free estimate. Call 811 before grinding, see [call 811](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/call-811-before-stump-grinding/). ### Sources - [USDA Forest Service, Fire Effects Information System: Salix nigra (black willow)](https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/tree/salnig/all.html) (read October 17, 2026) - [NOAA NCEI: U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020](https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/land-based-station/us-climate-normals) (read October 17, 2026) - [USDA Agricultural Research Service: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (PRISM, Oregon State University)](https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/) (read October 17, 2026) ### Talk to the office [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243) | Monday to Friday | 8:30 am - 5:00 pm | |---|---| | Saturday and Sunday | Office closed, phones answered | Phones answered seven days a week. 24-hour emergency service. [Free estimate](#quote) ### Keep reading - [Fremont cottonwood](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/fremont-cottonwood/) - [Silver maple](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/silver-maple/) - [Tree roots, sidewalks and sewer lines](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/tree-roots-sidewalks-sewer-lines/) - [Large tree removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/large-tree-removal/) - [Stump grinding and stump removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/stump-grinding/) ## Questions people ask Still have a question? Call [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243). Phones are answered seven days a week. ### Why is my weeping willow dropping branches? Willow wood is weak and the twigs break easily. Frequent small drops are normal; large limbs or limbs with rotted centers need an arborist to look. ### Do willow roots damage pipes? They seek water and can enter cracked joints in sewer, septic and drain lines. The Forest Service describes shallow, spreading willow roots. ### Can a willow survive without a ditch or lawn water? Willows are streamside trees and the Forest Service says they are not drought tolerant. Dead tops after an irrigation change are common. ### Will the stump resprout? Willows sprout readily, which is why grinding the stump is worth adding.