Willow harvest and the beginning of a new season

I finished harvesting a couple of weeks ago and I sorted the willow for different purposes.

The rods for drying for future weaving projects are sorted and bundled to be placed in the barn for drying over the next few months.

The large rods to be used for living willow projects - as the woven fence in the picture here and my various trees - were wrapped in black plastic and stored in the shade on the North side of the barn to prevent them from drying out and make sure they stay dormant. More to come soon about my workshops and the woven fence (also called a fedge).

Then, as I prepared for my workshops , I placed the bundles in buckets with their feet in water - still in the shade - Here are some of the Salix koriyanagi 'Rubykins', the rods up to 2.5 meters (8 feet) long, no branching and perfect for making the Harlequin tree.

As the majority of my willows were planted last spring, and most willow varieties don't grow the long, unbranched rods the first year, I had a big pile of branches that were not good for my above uses. I will play with it a bit to find use for some of it and maybe part of it will end up on a bonfire.

Spring is here and I am so pleased to see that the willow in the field is starting to show new growth. In a few weeks I will be posting photos from the field with beautiful colours. Even the very new and small shoots look quite different on the different varieties.          

The potted trees that i have at the front door started to leaf out a couple of weeks ago and by now they look like this. The wine red stems of Salix x acutifolia get a greyish-white bloom during their second year and after that they turn almost black. Very interesting and beautiful variety. It is great for living willow projects, but not very good for weaving as it is not very flexible.

Words and photos by Lene Rasmussen,Willows.

Living Willow Workshop, additional date available

My April 10 workshop is now full. I still have spots available for the April 17 and we have added another date, Thursday April 15 for those who prefer to attend on a week-day.

Words and photos by Lene Rasmussen,Willows.

Pussy Willows?

At the end of winter/start of spring some willows are among the earliest bloomers, providing nectar for the "early bird" - or should I say the early bee and other insects hunting for food seemingly long before any flowers are around.

For many people "Pussy Willows" are a sure sign of spring and a few branches with the fuzzy little catkins are picked for a vase.

What is a "Pussy Willow"? Some sources name the North American native willow Salix discolor and Salix caprea (Goat Willow, native to Europe and parts of Asia) as being pussy willows while other sources ad other Salix species under the title. In your mind, do you think "Salix discolor" when you hear pussy willow? or just any willow, blooming with catkins?

When you grow willows for basketry and/or cuttings, you most often harvest the rods before any catkins are visible, but this winter we had lots of snow in the field, so when spring "suddenly" came a few of my willows started to show their beautiful catkins.

These are from some "wild" willows that I have, maybe one of them is Salix discolor.

Salix dasyclados

Salix 'Americana'

Salix koriyanagi 'Rubykins'

Salix sachaliensis 'Sekka'

 

Salix viminalis

My Salix acutifolia doesn't show any catkins, but take a look at the blogpost about them at my blogger friend Vivian (Piletossen) - they almost look unreal.

Words and photos by Lene Rasmussen,Willows.

Living Willow Weaving - Workshop

Over the past couple of years I have been working with living willow creations, making "potted trees" for use in the garden, on the patio, at your front door, or anywhere you would like a small ornamental tree. After a season or two it is transplanted to the garden as it gets too "crammed" in the pot.
I am holding two workshops here for anyone who would be interested in participating, making their own tree or two. Two different "models" will be taught with choice of using different willow varieties for the trees:

A "basic" twisted tree (with variations), simple and classy. As the tree grows the 9 willow whips used to create the "twist" will - as they grow and expand - eventually grow together and look like a thick rope.

A "fancier" "Harlequin" tree. The pictures show use of a few different willow varieties as well as both summer and fall foliage of Salix koriyanagi 'Rubykins'. The willow whips in the "trunk" on this tree will also over the years fuse together as they grow.

Workshops scheduled:

Saturdays April 10 and April 17, 2010.

Start 10 a.m. Length of the workshop will depend on "model" and number of trees.

11770 Lakeshore Rd, Wainfleet

There's a $ 10 cover fee + cost of materials: Twisted tree $ 35.00, Harlequin tree $ 115.00

Bring your own lunch. Coffee, tea, and water is on me.

Please contact me by mail (find it under "Who is Salix" on left panel) to sign up or if you have any questions about the workshops.

Hope to see you there.

Words and photos by Lene Rasmussen,Willows.

Looking for willow cuttings for sale?

I had a plan........
My web-site was going to be up and running long time ago and among other things it would have information about willow cuttings for sale!
..........it didn't happen.......yet.......
So, if you are looking to buy willow cuttings I want you to know that - here in a country corner of Southern Ontario, Niagara - I have some for sale.

The image is from winter/spring 2009 and I used it in my post in May about willow cuttings.

Some of the cuttings have small roots developing already - that's the small white "knobs" that are visible on some.

Not everything goes according to plan.......I also wanted to post more about my willow varieties, but only 3 posts are up: Salix alba+, Salix koriyanagi 'Rubykins', and Salix 'Americana' and Salix purpurea 'Streamco', but that doesn't mean they are the only ones that I offer cuttings from.

For now, I have to refer you to my list of varieties, posted in the left column on the blog.

My 2010 prices are as follows:

 5 cuttings of a variety $   7.50

10 cuttings of a variety $ 12.50

20 cuttings of a variety $ 20.00

Minimum order is $ 20 and the cost of shipping will be added.

If you have any questions or would like to place an order, please send me a mail (you find my e-mail address under "Who is Salix?" on the left, by my picture.

Words and photos by Lene Rasmussen,Willows.

Salix alba x for winter colour

The third post in a series about my willows is about Salix alba, White Willow and some of its hybrids.
The many varieties and hybrids of Salix alba offer beautiful "sunshine" colours for the winter garden.

Salix alba 'Chermesina' click image to enlarge

Salix alba 'Chermesina', Redstem willow truly lights up in a snow filled landscape. These photos from March 2009 show plants planted from cuttings in April 2008. The bud scales are flat and yellow.

The bright yellow-orange-reddish colours are unique to the newest growth on a dormant willow plant. As I coppice (cut down to the ground) my willows every year, they will always show colour on the whole plant during winter. When the plant is left un-pruned the colours will slowly change to brown and only the newest growth will show colour during the dormant season.

Salix x 'Flame' click image to enlarge

The new growth on 'Flame' in early summer is very pretty with red stems and orangey-red tender leaves, but during the summer the plants turn rather dull with light greenish-yellow branches. As the plants prepare for dormancy, they start to take on the fiery colours.

Salix x rubens 'Hutchinson's Yellow' click image to enlarge

Salix x rubens, Hybrid Crack Willows, are hybrids between Salix alba and S. fragilis and they hybridize readily in nature.

The seasonal changes for 'Hutchinson's Yellow' are very much the same as for the above 'Flame' and they both have beautiful red bud scales on the dormant rods. Looking at the plants up close, it is difficult to tell the difference. From a distance, however, the overall winter colouring is darker, reddish for 'Flame' and more yellow, orangey for 'Hutchinson's Yellow'.

Salix x 'Red Corkscrew Willow' click image to enlarge

The corkscrew willows have become very popular for floral arrangements and are available at most floral suppliers. If you'd like to grow your own, it is very easy and you don't need to have space in your garden for a big tree. When you coppice the plant in early spring, you'll end up with 5-7' long curly branches by fall and they will develop beautiful colour when dormant. There are different varieties yielding different colours.

Some Salix alba varieties have flexible rods and are also used for basketry. The yellow colours are attractive, often used for contrast although the colours change drastically during the drying and subsequent soaking of the rods. Sometimes the rods are woven before they are completely dry and still flexible enough for weaving which often results in work keeping more of the original colours.

Words and photos by Lene Rasmussen,Willows.

Winter's Beauty

One of my favourite blogs: Gardening Gone Wild has long tempted me with their monthly contest, Picture This Photo Contest. For January 2010 the theme is "Winter's Beauty" and the many photos submitted (go to the comments for their contest post) truly show that there is beauty to be found in winter. You may not like the cold, ice, snow, and dark, but admit that there is lots of beauty!
Being new to photography, I finally this month decided to participate, and here is my chosen photo:

Although the snow is not visible on the photo, it is covering the ground in a thick, soft layer and I believe it gives the photo it's special light and colours - helped by the red twigs on the dogwoods in a distance.