caprea ‘Ogon’ 

This is Japanese selection of the Goat Willow forms a large shrub or small tree from 15-20ft. Leaves are a little smaller than the species and open bright yellow in early spring; in summer the leaves turn greener. The winter twigs are bright red contrasting with the shiny chestnut brown flower buds that open to much-prized catkins that are soft, silky and silvery. As this is a female cultivar the catkins turn green before exposing their seeds with white fluffy hairs to help the seeds disperse with the wind. A non-fussy shrub that will grow anywhere with average to moist soil; in hotter climes it prefers a little shade so the leaves don’t scorch. Prune regularly to keep a steady supply of young shoots that provide the most flowers and the brightest leaves. I thin out the thin twigs in the middle of the shrub as they produce few flowers and it exposes the framework of the tree. This treasure came from my friend Dick Jaynes at the amazing Broken Arrow Nursery in Connecticut; he in turn obtained it from Barry Yinger, the intrepid plant explorer of Korea and Japan. Unfortunately, one of the slowest willows to root!