Willow is my favorite material for making baskets with. It's easy to work with, and the end products are absolutely beautiful. Here is the best and easiest method I have ever tried for preparing it for a basket making project.
Wow! Mind blown! I couldn't figure out how to sail my willow because it is so long and you have just saved me so much time from my crazy ideas on how to soak it! Haha can't believe I didn't think of that!
It's okay to take them all from one spot. You could of cut that willow down to the ground while dormant and it would come back even thicker - check out pollarding or coppicing as a source. ^^
I was thinkibg the same, we grow ours in our back yard an cut from the bottom every winter once the leaves fall dry them for a few months an then use or soak them if needed
Love that bucket method! I was wondering how you can soak lengths of willow longer than a bathtub, and here's the answer. Thank you. Also makes storage look like a little wreath.
Was liking till I saw cable ties. Don't get me wrong cable ties are awesome , but doesn't willow make a good tie? Or isn't it strong enough. Liked n subbed anyway
you don't harvest willow in the summer. You harvest willow while it's dormant in late winter/ early spring those few weeks when the worst of winter is over, and close before the buds break.
Hard pruning (pollards and coppice cuts) stop food production for the tree. So if you expect the tree to give you decades of withers, prune with longevity in mind. Let the plant naturally go dormant first.
Gah! Zip ties, seriously? Please use some natural cordage instead - they're reusable and far more eco-friendly (those plastic ties are going to be around for hundreds of years leaching chemicals and turning into microplastics, and they're entirely unnecessary)!!! Sorry, major pet peeve haha! Otherwise, good vid. Thanks for the info.
I totally get what you are talking about which is why I use reusable zip ties....they are pretty sweet! I guess natural cordage fits in a little bit more with the vibe we are going for with natural basketry though, huh?
@@animalmansurvivor1452 Cool, I never knew reusable zipties existed. I see the onetime-only ties used all the time for the worst things, and I've also been cleaning up plastic trash all week, so the whole single-use thing has really gotten under my skin (pro'ly literally at this point)! Thanks for all your willow info. I'm just getting started with this, so it was a good video for that. :)
@@animalmansurvivor1452 There’s always that one, that no matter how nice and generous you are, taking your equipment, time, and effort to do this video, someone’s gotta pick it apart… 🙄🙄🙄 Then they get on their SMART PHONE, iPad, or laptop, using the internet, that is so “dangerous to the environment,” and complain, although their devices will ruin the environment more than your reusable zip ties…. I’m sure some Karen will try and explain her way out of this one, but we know she can’t… 😊😊😊
he's providing free basket weaving knowledge. the zip-ties aren't ideal, agreed. but a lot of time went into making this video and it should be respected
He uses reusable zip ties, and I’m going to downvote your comment because you used your phone - which is an environmental murderer even 1,000 worse than a stupid zip tie that triggered you!!! Go troll somewhere else please…
