Is Willow deer resistant?
Salix sp.
Browsed where deer pressure is high. Protect it.
Rating source: Rutgers NJAES E271
About Willow
Willows want water and will find it, which is why the roots invade drains and septic systems from surprising distances. Fast, brittle, short-lived and constantly dropping twigs. Superb for streambank stabilisation and wrong for almost any small garden.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 5.5 to 7.5
- Drainage
- Tolerates wet feet
- Water
- High
- Spacing
- 236 to 354 in apart
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Maintenance
- High
Deer-resistant alternatives to Willow
Same plant type, hardy in the same zones, but rated better on the Rutgers scale. If Willow keeps getting eaten, these go in the same spot.
Similar to Willow
Other trees with the same deer rating.
- Alternate-Leaved DogwoodCornus alternifoliaZones 3–7Occasionally damaged
- American PersimmonDiospyros virginianaZones 4–9Occasionally damaged
- AppleMalus sp.Zones 4–9, genus rangeOccasionally damaged
- Atlantic White CedarChamaecyparis thyoidesZones 3–9Occasionally damaged
- Atlas CedarCedrus atlanticaZones 6–9Occasionally damaged
- Bald CypressTaxodium distichumZones 4–9Occasionally damaged
Protecting Willow
Whether this survives comes down to local pressure, so it is worth knowing the options before it gets browsed rather than after.
- Protecting a young treeBrowsing costs a season. A buck rubbing a two-inch stem in October girdles it and kills it outright.
- How tall a deer fence needs to beEight feet, and six is the most common expensive mistake in deer fencing.
- Repellent that actually worksThe egg-based recipe that reproduces the active ingredient in the commercial sprays that win university trials.
- Check it is actually deerDeer tear and leave a ragged stub. A clean 45-degree cut is rabbits, and slug holes get blamed on deer constantly.
Where Willow grows
Hardy across most of these 50 states on zone range alone. Mountain and coastal areas sit outside the ranges used here, so check your own zone before ordering.
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- New York
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
- Ohio
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- Tennessee
- Georgia
- Texas
- Colorado
- California
- Oregon
- Washington
- New Hampshire
- Vermont
- Maine
- Rhode Island
- Delaware
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- South Carolina
- Florida
- Alabama
- Mississippi
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
- Idaho
- Utah
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
Browse from here
Every list Willow belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Willow
- Is Willow deer resistant?
- Willow (Salix sp.) is rated Occasionally Severely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Browsed where deer pressure is high. Protect it.
- What hardiness zones does Willow grow in?
- Willow is hardy in USDA zones 4 to 8. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat. That is the range across the genus, so a named species or cultivar may be narrower.
- Does Willow grow in shade?
- No. Willow wants full sun and will grow thin and flop in shade.