
The Amazing SuperTree®
A proprietary cultivar developed, and cloned for propagation, by Karsten Nursery
SuperTree - 18"-4' tall. (10 per bundle) Bare Root or Rooted Plugs, (Plugs best as it warms up)
SuperTree Hybrid
- Cultivar grows extremely quickly. These trees will often reach 18-20' within two years of planting.
- Structural integrity to reach a mature height of 40 - 50 feet. Average height is 45' and width is 15-20'.
- Width can easily be controlled by pruning.
- Grows well in all climates. This tree is hardy down to the cold of zones 2/3, up to zones 9/10.
- Disease resistant and has no known insect problems that affect the overall growth habit.
- Grows well in many different soil types, from sandy to clay soils.
- Moisture is an important requirement for Hybrid SuperTrees. If water is provided weekly during the first year after planting, the root system will easily support the tree after that, unless extreme drought conditions occur.
- Tree is a unique cross of Salix matsudana and Salix alba, creating Salix matsudana x alba.
We ship according to your zip code.
- We begin shipping warmer zip codes in March, and work our way north.
- You can order anytime and we will ship at the time appropriate for your zone.
- You will get an email when we ship your order which will include tracking.
- We will confirm receipt of your order within one day by email.
- Orders placed in the spring will be held until your location is ready for planting,
- Once spring arrives trees will usually ship within one week of any order.
- Orders placed after October 1st in the fall will usually not ship until the next spring as soon once your location is viable to plant.
- Please call or email if you have ANY questions about your order.
- We want only happy customers, so if you are not happy for any reason PLEASE let us know as soon as possible. If you change your mind, and we have not shipped your trees out already, we are happy to provide a full refund.
Will vary of course, but a six foot spacing works well if you are planting a single row. It is ideal to plant two rows and then stretch to eight foot spacing between the trees and also eight feet between the two rows, but stager the trees between the two rows. This gives a very effective wind, snow, dust, sound and visual barrier. The row of trees will be thick enough that it is difficult to walk through them after three years of growth.
Please do not trust other internet sellers who claim these trees will live longer than 30 years or even "up to 70 years." It is simply not true. We believe in being honest with our customers! Our experience indicates that Hybrid SuperTrees will begin to have broken branches and decline at about 18-20 years old. Total lifespan seems to be about 30 years. We have about 500 of these Hybrid SuperTrees at our nursery that are 30 years old, which we are about to remove to replant more. Average trunk diameter of those specimens is about 30". They look pretty rough by 30 years old, so plan to remove them before they begin to rapidly decline and drop branches.
Avoid purchasing this species of tree from nurseries or online sellers who ship them as simple cuttings or scions. This particular species struggles to establish without a healthy complete root system. The death loss percentage can be very high (35%+) because this hybrid species DOES NOT like to start with weak roots or with no established roots, and is sensitive to drying out and can be hard to get established. This means extra work for you, even if the seller agrees to replace your dead trees. If one tree in a row dies, you will have an open space in the row that is difficult to fill. The new replacements will be very small and the visual contrast will be exaggerated because the first set of trees planted will grow so quickly. Of course, you will unfortunately experience the same death loss percentage (35%+) with your replacements. Also, be aware that unrooted stock can only be planted in early spring. We do offer bare-root transplant stock, but all of ours are second or third year plants with well established root systems. We are also the only nursery in the US with the ability to ship plugs to fill in any gaps from March to October, if you did need a replacement tree.
Our bare root transplants are shipped dormant and the roots are well wrapped in moist dunnage for the trip. Our stock WILL NOT die if given even basic care, and you can plant anytime during spring. Your trees can be kept in water for a day or two if you cannot plant immediately after they arrive. It is very important that you keep the bare root stock moist at all times. Stock will arrive in a long carton, via either UPS, Postal or SpeeDee Delivery, depending on where you live. Shipping cost varies by location and quantity ordered, which determines the weight. We do not try to profit on shipping, it is already too expensive in our opinion. Instructions for care and planting will be shipped in the box with your trees.Please read those instructions.You can also read information aboutCare and Planting instructions here.
Our Karsten Nursery Hybrid SuperTrees are sold and shipped as rooted plugs, with soil enclosing the roots so they are never exposed to the air. Our bare root transplants are shipped dormant and the roots are well wrapped in moist dunnage for the trip. Our stock WILL NOT die if given even basic care, and you can plant anytime during the year. Your trees can be kept in water for a week or two if you cannot plant immediately after they arrive. It is very important that you DO NOT remove the netting on the plugs, which will be around the root ball. The root plug is about the size of a soda can so it's easy to plant. Your plug trees will arrive as 12-24" rooted plugs in a long carton, via either UPS, Postal or SpeeDee Delivery, depending on where you live. Shipping cost varies by location and quantity ordered, which determines the weight. We do not try to profit on shipping, it is already too expensive in our opinion. Instructions for care and planting will be shipped in the box with your trees. Please read those instructions. You can also read information about care & plantingon this page.
We highly recommend that you also purchase some PlantSkydd® animal repellent to protect your young trees from hungry critters like rabbits & deer. We are an authorized provider of PlantSkydd® & offer it because we want our trees to arrive healthy & then enjoy the best possible conditions to thrive after you planet them. You can order your PlantSkydd® in liquid or powder concentrate form, along with a sprayer to apply it to your freshly planted trees.Click here to see your options.
Other trees can take 30 years to give you shade and provide a visual barrier from unsightly views. Why wait that long? If you need a fast-growing hedge row that will provide quick protection from wind, snow, noise or dust, order your Hybrid SuperTrees from Karsten Nursery and get them in the ground soon! If you have enough space, we encourage you to plant a variety of other species parallel to your row of Hybrids so that in 20 years you will have a healthy, mature stand of trees inside the declining row of Willows.
We are glad to offer homeowners, landscapers & retail customers the advantage of wholesale pricing from us by purchasing in bundles as small as 10 trees. For pricing on the taller transplants please see our standard price list of all of our stock listed on this website. Our bundle prices for the Hybrid SuperTree Bare Root or Rooted Plugs are listed below by Size and Bundle Quantity.
To order, simply select how many trees you want to purchase, and then what size you'd like, and then click the Add to Cart button & proceed to payment.

SUPERTREE BENEFITS
✅ Grows 8–10’ in a year, max height 40–50 feet
✅ Makes a dense barrier for wind, snow, dust or sound
✅ Blocks the view of a neighbor or roadway fast
✅ Requires no pruning or other maintenance
✅ Produces no seeds nor suckers from roots, NOT invasive
✅ Grows beautiful brilliant green leaves each spring
✅ Leaves are narrow and require no raking
✅ No known disease or insect pests that require spraying

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
While otther species of trees can take 20 to 30 years to reach the size where they can provide significant shade, wind, snow or sound barriers, the SuperTrees will be giving all of those same attributes in just 3-4 years.
The SuperTrees make great nurse trees to protect other plantings of longer lived hardwoods or conifers planted on the leeward side or downwind side. Down the road in 20-25 years when the oaks, walnuts, hackberry, maple or spruce are more mature, the SuperTrees can be removed and the others will take over for the next 100+ years.
The SuperTrees are not known to be affected by any serious disease or insects which have devastated other species like elm, ash, beech, butternut (affected by butternut canker), eastern hemlock, dogwood, redbud, alder (affected by phytophthora alni) horse chestnut (affected by bleeding canker).
After a large part of Iowa experienced the "land hurricanes," specifically referring to a powerful type of thunderstorm called a derecho a few years ago, the only trees remaining in many farmer's shelterbelts were the SuperTrees. One customer said, "every other tree we had snapped off in the high winds, except for those dang SuperTrees, they bent over but they didn't break. Send me some more of those would you please."
Here are a couple videos so you can learn more about our SuperTree cultivar. Hybrid of Salix alba x Salix matsundana.
WHY CHOOSE KARSTEN NURSERY?
We've been growing and selling trees for more than forty years. We do most things right after all that time, but when we don't, we make it right for our customers. Glen Karsten, the man who founded our family owned nursery had a moto, "we want happy customers, so if someone ain't happy then I ain't happy either."
SuperTree - 18"-4' tall. (10 per bundle) Bare Root or Rooted Plugs, (Plugs best as it warms up)

Every single one of the 250 SuperTrees I purchased last spring made it through the winter and are still growing like weeds. It won’t be long now until we cannot see our neighbor’s ugly backyard.
John Wagner - Sibley, iowa