Is this tri-color willow dead - Ask Extension
I'm in Lexington Park Maryland and this variegated or tri-color Willow has been doing very well until about a month ago when some of the branches star...
Knowledgebase
Is this tri-color willow dead #944851
Asked September 11, 2026, 3:24 PM EDT
I'm in Lexington Park Maryland and this variegated or tri-color Willow has been doing very well until about a month ago when some of the branches started turning brown and now almost all of them are. Can I save it? And how?
St. Mary's County Maryland
Expert Response
Branches with dried leaves and a darker, blackened bark color are dead or too weakened to recover, and may have died from an infection like Botryosphaeria canker, a fairly common fungal disease that takes advantage of stressed plants. Fortunately, it doesn't infect the roots, and plants with otherwise-healthy root systems (especially those that grow quickly like willows) will probably be able to rebound in the following growing seasons. (Don't expect much, if any, new growth this year, as cold-hardy trees and shrubs are preparing their tissues for winter at this point and usually do not expend resources on tender new growth that will soon freeze.)
Was the willow checked for watering needs during the past two years of drought? If not, that may have made it more vulnerable to this type of damage (if drought by itself didn't damage the root system). You can find guidance on our Watering Trees and Shrubs page, and for now, all you can do besides monitoring soil moisture around the roots is to trim off all dead/dying branches.
There is no effective fungicide cure or preventative treatment for Botryosphaeria, but avoiding plant stress can help to minimize outbreaks. Some plants also seem to be more vulnerable to it than others, and unfortunately that includes willows, although a wide variety of species can contract the disease. Even if another infection is responsible, the remedy is the same: pruning out the damage and minimizing plant stress through watering during dry spells. This species of willow doesn't need to stay wet, but it appreciates reliable soil moisture during stretches of dry weather.
Miri
Was the willow checked for watering needs during the past two years of drought? If not, that may have made it more vulnerable to this type of damage (if drought by itself didn't damage the root system). You can find guidance on our Watering Trees and Shrubs page, and for now, all you can do besides monitoring soil moisture around the roots is to trim off all dead/dying branches.
There is no effective fungicide cure or preventative treatment for Botryosphaeria, but avoiding plant stress can help to minimize outbreaks. Some plants also seem to be more vulnerable to it than others, and unfortunately that includes willows, although a wide variety of species can contract the disease. Even if another infection is responsible, the remedy is the same: pruning out the damage and minimizing plant stress through watering during dry spells. This species of willow doesn't need to stay wet, but it appreciates reliable soil moisture during stretches of dry weather.
Miri
Thank you so much!
So should I cut it back to a few inches off the ground (now or later?), the whole thing? Or just leave it be except for giving it water when needed? Seems like there are almost no unaffected branches.
You're welcome.
Cut back any dead/dying branches as soon as they're seen, as the longer they remain, the more risk there may be for them harboring pathogens. You'd cut them back however far the dieback goes, which is usually visible as the dark stem color and no live leaves left on the branch/stem. Growth impacted by Botryosphaeria can't recover, but separate new growth can take its place as the shrub recovers, assuming no other issue arises. It's late enough in the season, though, that new growth probably won't appear until spring, but you still should remove the dead wood now. Even if most of the plant appears to have died back, the shrub might regrow starting next year, but unfortunately time will tell, as it's hard to predict how much energy it has for recovery, or if another overlapping issue is responsible for more damage to the crown or roots. If it doesn't produce much new growth by, say, late spring, you may want to replace the plant instead.
Miri
Cut back any dead/dying branches as soon as they're seen, as the longer they remain, the more risk there may be for them harboring pathogens. You'd cut them back however far the dieback goes, which is usually visible as the dark stem color and no live leaves left on the branch/stem. Growth impacted by Botryosphaeria can't recover, but separate new growth can take its place as the shrub recovers, assuming no other issue arises. It's late enough in the season, though, that new growth probably won't appear until spring, but you still should remove the dead wood now. Even if most of the plant appears to have died back, the shrub might regrow starting next year, but unfortunately time will tell, as it's hard to predict how much energy it has for recovery, or if another overlapping issue is responsible for more damage to the crown or roots. If it doesn't produce much new growth by, say, late spring, you may want to replace the plant instead.
Miri
You're welcome.
