Plant Type

Tree, Shrub

 

Height Range

12-25'

 

Flower Color

Lavender, Pink, White

 

Flower Season

Spring, Summer

 

Leaf Color

Green, Light Green

 

Bark Color

Green, Grey

 

Fruit Color

Brown

 

Fruit Season

Summer, Fall

Sun

Full

 

Water

Very Low, Low

 

Growth Rate

Moderate

 

Soil Type

Sandy, Clay, Loam, Rocky

 

Soil Condition

Average, Poor, Well-drained, Dry

 

Soil pH

Neutral, Basic

 

Adverse Factors

n/a

Design Styles

Meadow, Mediterranean, Ranch, Spanish, Native Garden

 

Accenting Features

Fragrance, Multi-trunk Tree, Showy Flowers, Specimen

 

Seasonal Interest

Summer

 

Location Uses

Background, Shrub Border, Foundation, Patio, Walls / Fences

 

Special Uses

Screen, Wind Break, Fire Resistant, Naturalizing

 

Attracts Wildlife

Hummingbirds

Desert Willow is a small, deciduous tree with shrubby inclinations. It grows about 15 to 25 feet tall and nearly as wide, with an open, though twiggy appearance. New bark is green, becoming brown and shaggy as it ages. Leaves are fine-textured, long and narrow, and willow-like. Remarkable, orchid-like flowers of white and pink appear in late spring and continue, to a lesser extent, all summer. It can be pruned as a multi-stemmed, low canopied tree or left more shrubby. There is a specimen at the Greater Avenues Water Conservation Demonstration Garden.

Grow in full sun in well-drained, loose soils; cannot tolerate overwatering. Cold hardy to -15F once established, but may experience some die-back in particularly hard winters or as it establishes. It does, however, thrive with reflective winter heat, so siting it against a south, west, or even east facing wall can help it over-winter. Flowers on new wood and so pruning, if necessary, ought to occur afterwards. It is quite xeric and requires no supplemental watering after establishment; however, a monthly soak will encourage better flowering.