Main

Living Willow for Countryside Management

Living Snow Fences

Drifting snow is a problem in many Northern regions and miles of snow fences have to be maintained to keep roads open and protect areas for livestock. Living snow fences have been developed to provide a low maintenance, longer lasting environmentally friendly

solution. Living Snow Fences are trees, shrubs, and/or native grasses planted at problem locations along roads or drainage ditches, or around portions of communities and

farmsteads. These vegetative barriers trap and control blowing and drifting snow. Willows are used in the plantings as they propagate easily and quickly form a dense barrier that can regrow if broken down by the weight of snow.

Willow hurdles are also used in a similar way to stabilise drifting sand in coastal regions. Living willow plantings bind sand dunes and help to prevent them from moving. Similarly willow cuttings can be planted to stabilise slopes, either by densely planting cuttings, or by setting out on the ground a grid of live rods that will root into the soil. (Newton Rigg

Agricultural College in Penrith, Cumbria is currently researching different methods of

establishing willow cutting for biomass planting.)

Habitat

Planting willow is also a good way of creating shelter and habitat for wildlife. 'Hunting, shooting and fishing' landowners often plant up awkward areas of their estates with willow as cover for gamebirds.

Willow is also planted on derelict industrial sites where it helps to purify and stabilise soil and provide a welcome 'green lung' in areas that are often treeless and polluted. Local

willow artists often use these plantings as a community resource.

River Defence Systems

Willow Spiling

Living willow can be used to good effect in riverbank protection using the willow's

amazing rooting properties. Willow spiling prevents the erosion of riverbanks. It is very

effective in protecting banks that are frequently eroded and washed away by the current. Stout green rods are driven upright into the riverbed and a wall of green willow rods is woven, using basic randing weave (behind one upright, in front the next and so on) to the height of the bank. The sections of weave are often called wattles. The gap between the eroded bank and the willow wall is infilled with soil. The woven willows quickly

develop a root system and shoots are sent out. The willow spiling quickly grows a

protective layer of shoots and the roots penetrate and stabilise the infilled soil. Using

willow to prevent riverbank erosion also helps to create habitat for waterside wildlife. This technique is used in Europe and the American. Salix Applied Earthcare, a California based company, have a good description of a large scale project in British Columbia, see their Watershed Restoration and Biotechnical Landslide Repair by Marlene Woodard, Project Coordinator, Salix Applied Earthcare from Land & Water Magazine (July/August 1997) visit the website http://www.mbw.com/cbmart.html for a full report. They used locally gathered willow for their wattle work. In the Swiss Alps willow wattles have been

installed for runoff control and Salix incorporated this technique into their project.

In Gilsland, Cumbria an even simpler method of riverbank protection was used. 500

willow cuttings were planted along a riverbank prone to erosion and threatening to wash away a section of garden. Nearly all the cuttings rooted producing a mass of shoots and roots that held the bank secure and saved the garden. By regular coppicing vigorous, healthy growth of both roots and shoots is promoted giving continued riverbank protection.

Willow faggots

Willow faggots are made up from small branches and twigs, which are trimmed and tied firmly into bundles. The bundles are lain between stakes and wired or staked into the river bank.The use of bundles encourages the build up of river silt and they are therefore

particularly useful where eroding banks need to be built up. Some of the material in the faggots will root and grow forming a binding mass.