Is my weeping willow dead
Hello – It’s very difficult to tell if your weeping willow is dead without knowing what variety of weeping willow you are growing and some background on this particular specimen. The standard advice to test if a woody plant is alive is to gently scrape your fingernail along a stem to remove the outer bark. If you see some green under the bark, your plant is likely alive.
Dwarf weeping willows can do very well in pots so I’m curious as to how you have overwintered your willow. I’m including a link below to an earlier answer we provided on overwintering a weeping pussy willow (Salix caprea ‘Pendula’). Your shrub is showing no signs of growth and if your plant is indeed a weeping pussy willow, then I would expect to be seeing the silky grey flowers called catkins which this shrub produces in early spring prior to leafing out. In any case, don’t give up yet and continue to water your pot until you can be absolutely sure your shrub has not survived.
Overwintering a Weeping Pussy Willow
Good luck!