My neighbours have just trimmed their willow tree as it was blocking out the light on their drive & taking up a lot of space. They've left the long straight whips for me. Should I leave them to dry or are they best used green?
Willow basket question
- Thread starter spandit
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from what i know about basket making (very little) they need to be debarked dried and then soaked as and when you intend to use them
but i've done one 2 hour session basket making so i might be wrong and others more talented/ knowledgeable than me could be along in a minute
but i've done one 2 hour session basket making so i might be wrong and others more talented/ knowledgeable than me could be along in a minute
You can dry them with the bark on, but it will take five days to a week to soak them to make them fit to use.......and you won't have the bark for cordage or dye.
If you leave them damp at this time of year they'll try to root, so they'd be best spread out on a dry path or the like than stooked.
cheers,
Toddy
If you leave them damp at this time of year they'll try to root, so they'd be best spread out on a dry path or the like than stooked.
cheers,
Toddy
They're dumped on a concrete drive at the moment. I'll rescue them and debark tomorrow. Now I just have to learn how to make a basket with them!
if you weave with green willow you will get loads of problems due to the willow shrinking and possibly cracking as it dries. I use willow to make dream catchers. what i do is when the willow is pruned in october/november I then leave it until march before i start to make the dream catchers by that point it is dry and ready to work.
Not so easy this time of year, tbh. If it strips off in long lengths when gently scored with a knife, then all's good, but I'd be a bit surprised if it did.
Commercially they use a decorticorer type machine, but at workshops with kids we hand them potato peelers
It's not good for cordage but it strips the bark and lets the wands dry a lot more easily, and the bark peelings can be dried off for dye or for boiling up later on to darken/strengthen willow bast cordage made from long lengths at the best season.
........don't take that as gospel though, I know some very experienced ropemakers who claim that the boiling does nothing to the strength of the cordage while others extol the practice.
atb,
Mary
Commercially they use a decorticorer type machine, but at workshops with kids we hand them potato peelers
It's not good for cordage but it strips the bark and lets the wands dry a lot more easily, and the bark peelings can be dried off for dye or for boiling up later on to darken/strengthen willow bast cordage made from long lengths at the best season.........don't take that as gospel though, I know some very experienced ropemakers who claim that the boiling does nothing to the strength of the cordage while others extol the practice.
atb,
Mary
Save yourself effort/frustration of peeling willow at this time of year (unless you realy want it for dye)- just accept that you will need to soak it longer!
I use my canoe (well - one of them) to soak my weaving twigs if they are too long for the waterbutt
I use my canoe (well - one of them) to soak my weaving twigs if they are too long for the waterbutt
Check out a three rod wail ( might not be the correct spelling) method. I used it on my basket and it worked a treat. There's a tutorial either on here or on a willow traders website that gives a very good guide to how to make a basket. I'll try and find it when I get home.
Well, I've de-leaved and trimmed the bits. Wasn't sure what diameters to keep. The biggest are about 15mm thick and 8' long. It's not a native species but a Japanese variegated one, I think. Produces lots of straight shoots with pink & green leaves.
Well worth stashing until you're in the notion to use it
There's plenty more but I'll wait until the leaves fall before trimming it. I'll also use some for planting - I'm told 15cm lengths are fine so should get many from these. A guerilla hedge will be growing by next spring if I'm lucky!
How would I test for that? As you can see in the picture, I've tied the bundle with small bits and it bent OK without snapping
This is just because now we grow specific varieties for basketry, especially with the advent of the biomass willows. Basically that's stuff grown for drainage, for powerstation or for charcoal.
If you're not making baskets commercially, it'll all make something useable. Might not be the 'best' but it'll do. Like using washing line instead of paracord, iimmc.
The oldest basket we have from Europe is made from privet. Long thin, whippy branches that dry off, soak and bend and then dry firm again, will work one way or t'other.
I've used the wild grown, no species, they've grown along the burn side for at least 300 years that we have mapped, willow rods, and they were fine. The oldest tree crashed down outside our fence over 20 years ago, it was over 4foot in diameter, and where it lies on the ground, it sent up new shoots
You can only give it a try and if it doesn't do so well, then it's cost nothing and you've learned sommat
cheers,
Toddy
If you're not making baskets commercially, it'll all make something useable. Might not be the 'best' but it'll do. Like using washing line instead of paracord, iimmc.
The oldest basket we have from Europe is made from privet. Long thin, whippy branches that dry off, soak and bend and then dry firm again, will work one way or t'other.
I've used the wild grown, no species, they've grown along the burn side for at least 300 years that we have mapped, willow rods, and they were fine. The oldest tree crashed down outside our fence over 20 years ago, it was over 4foot in diameter, and where it lies on the ground, it sent up new shoots
You can only give it a try
and if it doesn't do so well, then it's cost nothing and you've learned sommat cheers,
Toddy
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