I live overseas and went home for vacation in July. While I was home I planted some weeping willow trees at the waterline of our pond. I know these willow trees don't have the best reputation as far as branches breaking and I know there is also concern about their roots on a pond dam - but I did it anyway. This pond does not have a dam. I fill it with a dedicated water well. I planted them at the water's edge since I won't be there to water them. I really like the look of a large weeping willow tree. They were cheap (summer time trees generally are) and i planted 4 of them. If 2 make it I will be happy. They are at slightly different elevations so hopefully some of them receive the right amount of water to promote growth.

Anyway, just thought I'd share my project and give you guys and opportunity to tell me to plant native oak trees or GTFO!! It was a fun project and I did it with my 7 year old son. It was one of the activities we performed at Daddy Camp. I got him involved and he loved it. I'm proud of our work and hope he will have some trees to look back on with pride.

They are pretty trees. I think most on here that would say don't plant ANY trees on a tank dam though.
(NM - reading fail. Enjoy your trees!)

house i grew up in had a large weeping willow outside my bedroom window. loved that tree although it's no longer in existence.

I don't know much about weeping willows, but where I have seen them, they don't need wet roots.

Always the best place to aquire your Indiana Jones whip for the day as a kid!

ruddyduck said:

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house i grew up in had a large weeping willow outside my bedroom window. loved that tree although it's no longer in existence.

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You must've been a good kid if you loved that tree

Just had a track hoe go around my lake and pull out every willow.

They will take over a stock tank. They also suck water out like crazy.

Much better options out there. You'll be figuring out the best way to kill them pretty soon.

what about cypress? I know they do good on creeks and rivers. The knees, or as the coonasses call boscoyos would create some good structure for fish.

On a side note, my neighbor has cypress trees planted down the property line and I have to periodically machete off the tops off the knees in my yard so my mower doesn't jump around. Major planting fail by somebody a long time ago.

I doubt that. I don't see how they can take over or become a nuisance. I maintain this pond and the rest of the property well and so any area where one could pop up is subject to a Bush Hog being run over the top of it 2-3 times/year.

I also have Bald Cypress trees. I've planted about 8 of them in and around the pond. I actually let the pond get really low once and planted some out in the water. It is interesting watching the trees grow in the various locations. The ones planted on the bank are growing fast. The ones that are planted in the water are growing much slower. They are growing like other BC trees I've seen in water where the diameter of the trunk grows disproportionally larger than the branches.

You know why they grow slower right?