Willow will tolerate strong winds, but will suffer damage in the cold, dry easterly winds that have become increasingly the norm in recent springs. Several of our stools have died as a result.

Willow is also a light-demanding tree and will grow in some very eccentric shapes in order to reach any available light. If you want straight stems then grow willow in the open.

It is pollinated by both insects and birds and is a very important food plant for bumblebees early in the spring and, if left to grow for several years, will attract a wide range of finches. Willows produce large quantities of nectar: each flower in a catkin has a large nectary which produces an easily seen drop of nectar. It has been estimated that an adult Bluetit can get all of it's daily energy requirements from feeding on Willow for less than 4 hours each day.

Rabbits simply adore willow shoots. If you aim to coppice willow then you must install adequate fencing. Old wives' tales, such as spraying the leaves with lemon-scented washing-up liquid, do not work: rabbits simply love lemon-scented washing-up liquid.

Cultivation & Propagation  .

Willow can be grown easily from unrooted cuttings. In fact, the main problem is preventing unseasoned willow of any length from rooting promiscuously, however unwanted.

Of course, if you actually want it to grow then it is best to give it a fighting chance. The ground should be cleared of grass and weeds and then dug over.

The willow cuttings should be from vigorous, healthy, one-year-old wood and cut to about about 18" in length. It is not necessary to mark the cuttings to show which way up they should grow, just look which way the buds are pointing. If they are planted "upside-down" then the new shoots will simply perform a 180 degree turn and head back the right way. Of course it is a bit embarrassing, having a willow that looks like a candelabrum.

Willow roots can be very aggressive. Care should be taken to remove ALL of the roots when removing  a plant as it can quite easily regrow from any small root segments left in the ground.

Planting & Aftercare  .

Plant the cuttings directly into the ground so that only 3 or 4 buds are showing and the rest are below ground. Make a planting hole by pushing in a sharpened stake. Finally, firm around the cutting with your foot.

The cuttings shouldn't need to be watered, but will need to be protected from competition for moisture from weeds and, particularly, grass until they are established. It is best to place a tree-shelter around each one: this will protect the cutting from any spray-drift when weedkilling. Otherwise each cutting will need to be handweeded several times a year for the first few years: a backbreaking task if hundreds of cuttings have been planted.

Formative Pruning & Coppicing  .

After about 2 years, the willow cuttings should have established a decent root system. Therefore, during the 3rd winter the growth should be cut back to ground level.

Depending on soil quality and moisture, the likely rotation period for suitable rods/binders is 1-2 years. It will probably be necessary to cut the stools every year for the first few years in order to get the coppice stools properly productive. The esulting rods will not be of much use for anything other thn kindling.

As is usual in coppicing, the aim is for low, clean, outwardly sloping cuts. This will prevent water from lyiing in the centre of the stool and rotting it and reduce the likelihood of desease.

It is likely that a number of coppice stools will die, but they can easily be replaced by new cuttings.

Willow is actually a tree and it sincerely want to be a tree. When willow coppice falls into disuse the willow stools will quickly revert to type, with the strongest shoots developing into towering trees.

Timber Properties  .

Wiilow is a very soft wood and does not weather well out-of-doors. Where willow has had the bark removed, it can be preserved by treating with linseed oil each year.

We have found that willow makes really good kindling for our woodburning stove. Smaller rods and larger side branches can be tied into bundles and stored in the loft during the summer. By the following autumn, they will have dried out and can then be cut into 9" lengths using garden secateurs. When laid on top of crumpled newspaper (the Financial Times has no equal in this regard) they catch alight very easily and burn strongly: thus igniting the larger sticks laid on top.

Willow makes very good artists' charcoal.

The legendary rooting ability of willow can be used to help with the hardwood cuttings of other plant varieties. Strip the bark from healthy, vigorous, one-year-old willow stems and put them in a pan of water. Bring the water to the boil and simmer for about 10 minutes. Leave the mixture to stand for a couple of days and then bottle it. This wiil keep for several months and new cuttings can be dipped in the solution to aid root-growth.

I am pretty dubious about the pactice of installing living willow structurs and "fedges" in suburban gardens. My experience has been that the rooted willow will grow strongly both upwards and outwards: to form quite sizeable trunks. After a few years the cute and cuddly little structure will have developed into quite a monster in the garden.