Questions about Willow Planting and Drying for Winter Storage

[MuddyFarms]

I am getting an area ready for planting some willow this winter. Do you have any tips or ideas? I am thinking of planting a block of it for fodder, but I am not sure about what spacing I should use.

I was also wondering about fully coppicing each tree/bush a couple times a year (once it is established) and drying what the rabbits and other animals don't need at the time. Does that seem too harsh? I have read that willows can handle heavy harvesting/coppicing, but I am not sure what that really means. My thought was that fully coppicing it would enable it to regrow the good branches and be easiest to manage (rather than taking bits and pieces during the year). I have always just taken the young shoots off the older branches of the willows I have now. I live in a fairly mild NW climate (zone 6, I think). I know that basket willows get coppiced once a year in the winter so they can use the good, straight shoots, but I am not sure how often a willow could handle that during their growing season.

What do you find is the easiest/best way to dry it for winter storage and not have mold issues? I have heard you can just bundle it straight from the tree and put it up. Would it seem like it would need lots of airflow around it doing it that way, though?

Anything you might want to mention about willow is appreciated!

 

[ThunderHill]

I'll be following this thread, as I also want to grow willow for forage and would love advice on how best to manage coppicing/pollarding, drying for winter use, etc. I ordered a few weeping willow cuttings off Amazon a few months ago and planted them near the rabbit barn in some soggier areas. Fingers crossed that they grow in the spring!

 

[Preitler]

I didn't plant them, but I have willows growing along the creek and have to cut them because of low power lines. I cut them through winter and give the rabbits the twigs and stuff up to 2" diameter, I cut the bark with a knive to give them starting points with the thicker branches/trunks. I start feeding with leafs still on when green forage gets scarce, and continue through winter without the leafs.

What I noticed was that with some sorts they don't like the most recent grown stuff, like the long streight finger thick shoots. I think what mine like most of the kinds I have here is the Brittle Willow.

I did strip and dry leafs like hay 2 years ago because I had to cut some trees in summer, quite some work but stores more compact than dried branches (which I'm sure would work fine too, mine don't gnaw dried bark though), they like it ok, but not as much as dried ash leafs.

I have 2 goat willows (salix caprea) too which aren't exactly their favorite, but they eat the bark too.
Those I cut back to the trunk at an height of about 1.6m every 2-3 years, one branch after the other. With the willows along the creek I just cut out the biggest ones (appr. 3" diameter) and let the others grow.

I know there are more fancy cutting techniques than mine, but since I have to keep the power line clear and can feed everything but the thickest parts with too thick bark that works for me.
After the rabbits went over it everything gets dried, cut, and ends in my stove.

 

[MuddyFarms]

I didn't plant them, but I have willows growing along the creek and have to cut them because of low power lines. I cut them through winter and give the rabbits the twigs and stuff up to 2" diameter, I cut the bark with a knive to give them starting points with the thicker branches/trunks. I start feeding with leafs still on when green forage gets scarce, and continue through winter without the leafs.

What I noticed was that with some sorts they don't like the most recent grown stuff, like the long streight finger thick shoots. I think what mine like most of the kinds I have here is the Brittle Willow.

I did strip and dry leafs like hay 2 years ago because I had to cut some trees in summer, quite some work but stores more compact than dried branches (which I'm sure would work fine too, mine don't gnaw dried bark though), they like it ok, but not as much as dried ash leafs.

I have 2 goat willows (salix caprea) too which aren't exactly their favorite, but they eat the bark too.
Those I cut back to the trunk at an height of about 1.6m every 2-3 years, one branch after the other. With the willows along the creek I just cut out the biggest ones (appr. 3" diameter) and let the others grow.

I know there are more fancy cutting techniques than mine, but since I have to keep the power line clear and can feed everything but the thickest parts with too thick bark that works for me.
After the rabbits went over it everything gets dried, cut, and ends in my stove.

Awesome! That is exactly the kind of stuff I was hoping to hear about from people's experiences; thanks!

I read somewhere (I think I have a pamphlet or something that says it) that certain trees like willows, and maybe poplars, have high concentrations of protein in their bark during the winter, which makes that the best part for the animals to eat at that time. The willows store proteins in the bark in preparation for spring leafing out, I think. I thought that was interesting, especially with you mentioning that they like eating the bark off the branches in the winter. I wonder then if it is better to just keep cutting it off the bushes in the winter rather than drying it, if they don't like eating the dry stuff and if there is more protein in the bark during the winter anyway...

 

[hotzcatz]

There's other species of tree which are nutritious for rabbits. We have mulberry and ti plants here that are planted especially for the rabbits although they get forage from other plants as well.

Willow likes wet areas, is there a handy wet area near your bunnies so you don't have to carry the fodder very far?

 

[MuddyFarms]

There's other species of tree which are nutritious for rabbits. We have mulberry and ti plants here that are planted especially for the rabbits although they get forage from other plants as well.

Willow likes wet areas, is there a handy wet area near your bunnies so you don't have to carry the fodder very far?

Yeah, Mulberry is definitely on my spring to-plant-list! It sounds like an amazing tree. Do you find that they like any specific part of the tree and not others? Do they get tired of it or do they always love it? That is also a tree I am trying to figure out a good harvesting method for. I am working to get about five main forages available for the rabbits so I can rotate and try to have more balanced nutrition for them. But, of course, I have to find things that work for my climate. I wanted moringa but was happy to find that mulberry is similar and can tolerate the northern US.

You're right; trying to have the fodder as close as possible to the rabbits is such an important thing! I have a couple possible areas to plant the willow; none of them are especially wet, but I do have a few wild willows on the property that do well. I was thinking of planting near them and seeing how they do.

 

[WylieCoyote]

Willow is fairly easy to start by taking a cutting and planting it (literally stabbing it into moist soil). As long as it has access to plenty of moisture, it will flourish.

 

[MuddyFarms]

Willow is fairly easy to start by taking a cutting and planting it (literally stabbing it into moist soil). As long as it has access to plenty of moisture, it will flourish.

That is just an absolutely cool thing about willow!

 

[MnCanary]

Growers that sell willow and other shrubs for decorations cut the shrub down, almost to the ground, while the shrub is dormant. Then, in the spring, it will throw up a lot of new, long shoots.

If you do a large pruning on shrubs in late summer, the shrub can force growth that doesn't have time to be ready for cold weather. It is then prone to freezing and dying. My advice is that you don't cut too much after July 1, and let the shrub go dormant naturally.

 

[MuddyFarms]

Growers that sell willow and other shrubs for decorations cut the shrub down, almost to the ground, while the shrub is dormant. Then, in the spring, it will throw up a lot of new, long shoots.

If you do a large pruning on shrubs in late summer, the shrub can force growth that doesn't have time to be ready for cold weather. It is then prone to freezing and dying. My advice is that you don't cut too much after July 1, and let the shrub go dormant naturally.

That makes sense! Thank you; that is the kind of information I have not been able to find anywhere.

It sounds like I may need a fair number of willow bushes so I don't have to take a ton from each one during the year. Then in the late winter/early spring dormancy I could cut it down to ground level to get it started fresh again. That way the size would be manageable and it would grow lots of those good, new shoots every year. I wonder if it is okay to take a couple of the long shoots at a time during the winter until it is completely cut down, or if it would be better for the bush to be cut down all at once...

 

[MnCanary]

That makes sense! Thank you; that is the kind of information I have not been able to find anywhere.

It sounds like I may need a fair number of willow bushes so I don't have to take a ton from each one during the year. Then in the late winter/early spring dormancy I could cut it down to ground level to get it started fresh again. That way the size would be manageable and it would grow lots of those good, new shoots every year. I wonder if it is okay to take a couple of the long shoots at a time during the winter until it is completely cut down, or if it would be better for the bush to be cut down all at once...

I don't know the answer to your question about gradually taking shoots versus taking them all at once. I would guess that since the bush is dormant, it wouldn't matter. If you have a row of willow bushes, you could cut one down completely every so many days. That would be more efficient.

This is how the people that grow willow for basket weaving do it: Coppicing basketry willow - Willow Basketmaker

 

[ThunderHill]

That's really cool! Thanks for the link!

 

[MuddyFarms]

I don't know the answer to your question about gradually taking shoots versus taking them all at once. I would guess that since the bush is dormant, it wouldn't matter. If you have a row of willow bushes, you could cut one down completely every so many days. That would be more efficient.

This is how the people that grow willow for basket weaving do it: Coppicing basketry willow - Willow Basketmaker

That's really cool! Thanks for the link!

Yes! Thank you; that is an inspiring article they have. Makes me want to get into basket-weaving, too!

 

[MuddyFarms]

There are so many varieties of willow sold there; I hope the rabbits like whichever ones I pick!

 

[KelleyBee]

This is how the people that grow willow for basket weaving do it: Coppicing basketry willow - Willow Basketmaker

Awesome link. Thank you!

 

[Zee-Man]

Yeah, Mulberry is definitely on my spring to-plant-list! It sounds like an amazing tree. Do you find that they like any specific part of the tree and not others? Do they get tired of it or do they always love it? That is also a tree I am trying to figure out a good harvesting method for....

My rabbits like mulberry best in the spring, but will eat it year round. I vary forage from day to day so they don't get bored with any one thing. Mul;berry can quickly become a weed. Like many trees, when distessed (by coppicing or pollarding) they like to send up suckers. I tend to coppice throughout the growing year then pollard down to the ground in late autumn or over winter. My rabbits will eat new growth branches up to first grade pencil size. Maybe larger branches too, though I don't let them get that big. Leaves are always accepted.

I have fond memories of the pussy willow that grew in my childhood front yard. It had been cut close to the ground and came back. It was sort of a bird cage shape so was great for a 6 year old to climb in. I have a spot where I could put one or two. What are thought on pussy willow as fodder?

 

[MuddyFarms]

My rabbits like mulberry best in the spring, but will eat it year round. I vary forage from day to day so they don't get bored with any one thing. Mul;berry can quickly become a weed. Like many trees, when distessed (by coppicing or pollarding) they like to send up suckers. I tend to coppice throughout the growing year then pollard down to the ground in late autumn or over winter. My rabbits will eat new growth branches up to first grade pencil size. Maybe larger branches too, though I don't let them get that big. Leaves are always accepted.

I have fond memories of the pussy willow that grew in my childhood front yard. It had been cut close to the ground and came back. It was sort of a bird cage shape so was great for a 6 year old to climb in. I have a spot where I could put one or two. What are thought on pussy willow as fodder?

Thanks for the imput on the Mulberry! I was looking on a nursery website that sells all kinds of little-known varieties of trees and bushes, and I found that they sell some varieties of Mulberry that either do not seed or are only sold as females so they do not spread by seed. I can't remember which at the moment, but since I don't have any mulberry near me, I figured that could be a good thing. I already have too many other things I am trying to get rid of.

 

[MuddyFarms]

This is what the nursery says about their trees (I thought it interesting):

"The American landscape industry has done a disservice to the public and for wildlife by promoting fruitless (no messy fruit) mulberry trees as shade trees. They're not especially ornamental & male mulberries are notorious pollen producers as many allergy sensitive people are aware. The named varieties of mulberry we sell are all females, producing little or no pollen, but loads of sweet, nutritious fruit. Without a male, female mulberries produce seedless fruits that many people, birds, and other creatures find delicious. The trick to avoid a mess is to plant in grassy areas away from patios, driveways, etc. where stain can be a problem. No staining varieties (White, Pink, Beautiful Day, Sweet Lavender or Pakistan) can also be planted. Grown freely they can achieve the stature of a nice shade tree or with annual pruning they can easily be maintained as a bush since the fruits are produced on the new growth."

 

[MnCanary]

This is what the nursery says about their trees (I thought it interesting):

"The American landscape industry has done a disservice to the public and for wildlife by promoting fruitless (no messy fruit) mulberry trees as shade trees. They're not especially ornamental & male mulberries are notorious pollen producers as many allergy sensitive people are aware. The named varieties of mulberry we sell are all females, producing little or no pollen, but loads of sweet, nutritious fruit. Without a male, female mulberries produce seedless fruits that many people, birds, and other creatures find delicious. The trick to avoid a mess is to plant in grassy areas away from patios, driveways, etc. where stain can be a problem. No staining varieties (White, Pink, Beautiful Day, Sweet Lavender or Pakistan) can also be planted. Grown freely they can achieve the stature of a nice shade tree or with annual pruning they can easily be maintained as a bush since the fruits are produced on the new growth."

Just a word of caution: White Mulberry (Morus alba) is invasive and is listed as a noxious weed in some states. In Kentucky, I've seen the seedlings pop up everywhere. Morus alba is not native to our continent.

Morus rubra, the Red Mulberry, is native in the U.S. and is not considered invasive.

 

[MnCanary]

My rabbits like mulberry best in the spring, but will eat it year round. I vary forage from day to day so they don't get bored with any one thing. Mul;berry can quickly become a weed. Like many trees, when distessed (by coppicing or pollarding) they like to send up suckers. I tend to coppice throughout the growing year then pollard down to the ground in late autumn or over winter. My rabbits will eat new growth branches up to first grade pencil size. Maybe larger branches too, though I don't let them get that big. Leaves are always accepted.

I have fond memories of the pussy willow that grew in my childhood front yard. It had been cut close to the ground and came back. It was sort of a bird cage shape so was great for a 6 year old to climb in. I have a spot where I could put one or two. What are thought on pussy willow as fodder?

I like pussy willow, but so do Japanese Beetles. If your area has these beetles, you might lose production in July, maybe July and August. It depends on how thick the beetles are in a given year. In my yard, pussy willow was the first plant they went to.