Willow Plantation

[Lfservices]

Hi Guys

 

Ive been chatting to a local guy who has several plantations of fairly young willow. They have no use for it apart from bio-mass.

 

I was thinking about making a deal that we cut it and use it all. The brash could be chipped and the stems used for making furniture etc.. Would there be any use for it in hedgelaying ? would I make much money from it ?

 

 

Cheers 

[Guest Gimlet]

Can certainly be used for heatherings if it's the right size but I don't like willow for stakes. tends to sprout.

[AHPP]

Can certainly be used for heatherings if it's the right size but I don't like willow for stakes. tends to sprout.

Is the sprouting not a good thing? Or does the willow outcompete the other species too much?

[Big J]

I don't think that there would be much of a market for willow furniture. Best to stick to biomass IMO.

[Stere]

Biomass willow is a  different sub species that basket willows may not be the ideal stuff for weaving withies if that what you mean by furniture?

 

Willow cultivation - Wikpol.net

WWW.WIKPOL.NET

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all about willow cultivation in Poland

 

Think  most volume of  willow furniture & baskets etc comes from Poland nowadays apart from small scale & Somerset lvls. The  industry declined drastically since advent of plastics,,,,,

 

Maybe in for a revival though since plastic getting a bad name recently?

 

 

[Guest Gimlet]

12 hours ago, AHPP said:

Is the sprouting not a good thing? Or does the willow outcompete the other species too much?

Not really. Stakes are only sacrificial scaffolding. You don't want them taking root. I don't think any of the willow species make very good hedges anyway They're all pretty easy to lay but all too vigorous and leggy and likely to overwhelm other species without bringing much to a hedge that's of any structural use. All willows tend to produce a forest of new leaders at the heal but little in the way of side shoots up the pleacher which are what's needed to knit the hedge together. 

 

Laying willow is like introducing an out of control coppice stool to the middle of the hedge that competes with it rather than contributes.    

[Dorset Hedgelayer]

Depending on species, Salix great for binders.