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Willow for fuel.
#1
Posted 29 November 2012 - 09:40
Are any of you growing willow for firewood. We use a logburner to heat our home and we're looking into planting willow for fuel. The places we've looked at getting it from say we need to plant so many trees each year for 4 years and then we will have a continuous supply.
I just wondered if anyone had done it and what the results are like.
Thanks.
#2
Posted 29 November 2012 - 10:41
#3
Posted 29 November 2012 - 12:25
#4
Posted 29 November 2012 - 14:36
The first lot we did at this time of the year having bought them on eBay, then we did a second lot in the next spring and finally a third lot when we had that heatwave earlier on this year!
Having done some reading up on the subject, we actually bought some last autumn (again from eBay) and put the slips into black flower buckets filled with sand. Then kept the sand moist over winter and those were the ones we planted out during the heatwave. We were really impressed with the root systems and they are doing extremely well and looking a lot healthier than the second lot we planted.
#5
Posted 29 November 2012 - 15:31
#6
Posted 29 November 2012 - 17:04
Roger
#7
Posted 29 November 2012 - 18:04
We cut one length from each willow and then cut it in to 1ft lengths we then planted them in sand in flower pots as described previously.
They have taken extremely well.
#8
Posted 29 November 2012 - 21:27
#9
Posted 30 November 2012 - 21:39
Cg how long to root in pots in your poly tunnel, another profit line ?
#10
Posted 30 November 2012 - 21:41
#11
Posted 01 December 2012 - 18:18
I have one willow on my land which isn't doing much to soak up the recent deluge . Good idea about hedging/windbreaks, might do that this winter, would give me a bit of privacy as well lol. I'm also thinking of a willow dome or similar to house a composting loo, anyone tried that yet?
Romany
#12
Posted 01 December 2012 - 18:26
#13
Posted 03 December 2012 - 22:51
Romany did you mean willow dome or composting loo have been trying the latter out for last year
roger
#14
Posted 04 December 2012 - 17:46
Roger,
Willow dome over a composting loo is what I was thinking! How have you got on with the compost loo, and how high have you got it off the ground?
With regards to fuel: I have lots of Ash saplings that I want to transplant, could coppice them as well as Ash is fantastic firewood even when green.
Romany
#15
Posted 04 December 2012 - 18:27
Another fantastic and little known use for willow is to root cuttings. You cut a branch that is approx one inch in diameter into one inch pieces, fill a container with them and cover with water for 24 hours. The water is then used as the water in which you root your cuttings or water your cuttings with. I have had fantastic results using this method. This water also works wonders if you water your seeds/seedlings with it. A word of warning though, willow spreads like nothing else which can be a positive or negative thing depending on your situation.
Romany, with regards to your ash saplings, please keep a very close eye on them. Chalora (ash die back desease) is decimating our ash trees. If you notice any sign of it I would remove and destroy the offending sapling immediately. It is caused by a fungus and without swift action it could rapidly spread throughout your stock. On a more positive note due to the way that ash trees reproduce some may be resilient or even immune to it, so hopefully it will not be as destructive as dutch elm desease was (although the wood I am currently working in has elms that are much larger than they should be able to become with this desease present, so hopefully that situation is improving.). If you end up with trees like this they could become very valuable, as as you state ash is a fantastic wood and for much more than just burning.
#16
Posted 04 December 2012 - 20:16
Thank you TGE, I wasn't aware of this disease so I will check the saplings before I move them. They are actually self-sown and some of them are quite big, so hopefully they are ok.
They do seem to self-sow quite freely and I agree, ash is useful for more than just firewood, it is a lovely timber.
Romany
#17
Posted 04 December 2012 - 21:04
The fact that ash self-sows so easily is the one thing that may save the species as it increases genetic diversity. Unfortunately the desease can be hard to spot at this time of year as it is much easier to spot when the tree is in leaf, both by the crown dying back (leaving bare branches above the crown) and necrosis of the leaves (localised areas of dying on individual leaves). It can be diagnosed by the sight of lesions on the bark usually where twigs meet branches and where branches meet the trunk but this can be quite difficult although its usually easier in saplings. The size of the tree unfortunately doesn't provide any protection, however we are now not destroying infected adult trees as we discover them as the desease has spread way beyond our worst nightmares and by leaving them hopefully as they seed over the coming years a resistance or immunity may be built up. We can only hope that this happens, the desease has decimated the ash stocks of Denmark, killing over 90% of them.
#18
Posted 04 December 2012 - 22:20
romany
compost loo is upstairs in toilet room, standard wc in bathroom for non commited depositers!!!
it works fine no smell empty about 7 to 10 days , two pallet sized composting boxes 1st not full after nearly a year
wood chips for cover. would recomend the system
roger
#19
Posted 18 December 2012 - 21:22
#20
Posted 18 December 2012 - 21:35
is there any chance you could post some pictures.