those shoots are valueable feed. id drop them into a basket and feed it off. it can be chopped for ducks/chicken/pigs or fed straight to horses, cattle, sheep/goat, rabbit, cuy. we get caught up on chop and drop but sometimes it's worth it to move a normal low value mulch and keep the high value chop feed.
Super satisfying to watch this. Whenever you watch typical videos like this they will leave you wondering: "But what will it look like the next year?" You've figured it out!
dude im loving ur hobby i wish i could find something that excites me like that. all i love doing is fishing and idk anyone with a decent pond who will let me fish. i hate public ponds. i do more cleaning up around the lakes than i do fishing most times.
Ha reminds me of the farm in the south of England. Put in willow fence posts and single strand wire. It didn't take long for the fence posts to root and the wire was 12ft up in the air.
@FieldtoFarm_UK thank you so much for the inspiration. I just bought some hybrid willow tree cuttings, and will stay growing the branches to make my own fence. I love your video, thank you so much!
It grows stronger over time but yes, you probably need a temporary wire fence or something like that the first year or two. You also want a different pattern with stems about 1.5 times the length of the fence's height planted at a 45 degree angle and interwoven with each other. Hanna Van Aelst has a few good videos showing this technique. There are a few things to keep in mind if you want to use willow fences at farm, some positive, some negative and some can be either. + Willow leaves seem to be good food for the livestock. You can let the animals simply graze on the fence and you can cut all the year's new sprouts in late autumn and feed them to them. (From a nutritional point of view, willow leaves are also perfectly good food for humans but they may not taste that good.) + Willows have wide and shallow root systems. You don't want them along fields you are going to plow and probably not too close to buildings either. + Willows can be rather thirsty and probably not good in a dry climate. + Rather obvious but important to remember: Any living fence/field hedge is permanent(ish). They can make a lot of sense for barriers that are supposed to stand a few years - or even decades - but not for temporary fencing. + When it comes to maintenance, the challenge with living fences is exactly the opposite of "dead" ones. Regular fences deteriorate and need to be repaired and replaced regularly. Living fences grow and need to be cut down to keep them from becoming to overwhelming. When it comes to willows, you want to pollard them agressively: cut down all the year's new sprouts in late autumn or during winter. + A willow fence can offer a couple of options for a little bit of extra income to your farm. Whether these are worth exploiting depends on so many factors so each farmer will have to decide for themselves. The leaves can be used as animal feed (as I already mentioned), stems can be sold to basket weavers and of course, everything you cut off can be used as firewood. Anything you cut off can be used for composting too but as I'm sure you know, you have to be careful with wood in compost; a little bit is good but add too much and your plants will die from potassium OD.
Thanks for the video. I'm thinking about putting in living Willow fencing at the back of my garden where it is at the end of a street that is a bit of a wind tunnel will it be strong enough not to get blown over or does it need concreted in fence posts to support it?
I wonder if there was coppice culture in what is now the USA, or if colonials brought it with them. I'm delighted to see it in use and by young people at that!
Awesome result!! You should make a third layer on top at the end of the season. The hedge could be over 6-10 feet 😍
those shoots are valueable feed. id drop them into a basket and feed it off. it can be chopped for ducks/chicken/pigs or fed straight to horses, cattle, sheep/goat, rabbit, cuy. we get caught up on chop and drop but sometimes it's worth it to move a normal low value mulch and keep the high value chop feed.
My poultry thank you! I did not know this👍
looking good, don't forget to do an update this spring, gonna have a go at hedge as we have wet land
Super satisfying to watch this. Whenever you watch typical videos like this they will leave you wondering: "But what will it look like the next year?" You've figured it out!
WOW this looks so great! I am really impressed with the artistic quality of your design - thanks for the video!
dude im loving ur hobby i wish i could find something that excites me like that. all i love doing is fishing and idk anyone with a decent pond who will let me fish. i hate public ponds. i do more cleaning up around the lakes than i do fishing most times.
Ha reminds me of the farm in the south of England. Put in willow fence posts and single strand wire. It didn't take long for the fence posts to root and the wire was 12ft up in the air.
Looks Great, keep the updates coming.
what a gorgeous looking fence. Is there any particular species of willow you used?
To be continued? It's very interesting to see what the fence looks like.
Very nice, be good to see what it looks like Summer 2024.
I love this idea!
Thank you for the update!
Any chance at an update video now, 1 year later?
Very nice
Nice job, it’s like posh hedge laying. Also nice jacket, got exactly the same one!
Amazing work
Looks very nice. very interesting. 👍🏻
Really nice. ❤
Great job that mate. Looks really good.
gonna do this in my backyard as a privacy fence on the sides of property. hopefully 7-8 feet.
Ull have to trimm it every year to keep it that low lol
The second you look away it will be 15 feet tall lol. If its anywhere close to a road or something you should yse willow to do this.
How would someone mow the grass near that without hurting it?
🎉 excellent thank you
Beautiful fence! Please do another update next season.
I will be, and I'll be making another more fancy looking fence this winter
A how to for this one? Did you root the whips before planting? @@FieldtoFarm_UK
From what I understand, if you use a metal pole to make a hole in the ground and put the Willow whips right in, they will root themselves.
Sorry for delay about 1ft deep they are pushed in
There are plenty of willow species on the market. Which one u advise us to use on that kind usage.
Beautiful fence
Should be dog proof too 😅
What does this fence look like a year later in '24?
He’s got a video from a month ago showing the update take a look at his page
Great Job
Awesome video mate, when did you cut the whips and what time of year did you plant them? Cheers 👍🏻
All over Costa Rica.
Sick fence
Thanks
Nice! 👍👍
Tidy, I like it.
Looks good!
How will this look like in 10 or 20 years?
Won't they geoq into full size trees and crowd each other.
Any specific willows to grow?
Did you use the hybrid willow tree branches or regular willow trees?
Any willow should work 👍
@FieldtoFarm_UK thank you so much for the inspiration. I just bought some hybrid willow tree cuttings, and will stay growing the branches to make my own fence. I love your video, thank you so much!
How is it looking now?
Where can I order the right willow from a nursery in western Canada, all the nurseries sell the same shit for little backyard gardens
what type of willow did you use?
Look the dogs dangles, it's gonna fill out awesome
How would you control the invasive roots? Any updates?
Can this be done with any willow variety?
I think so yeee
Very good for a domestic setting; but as a farmer, I can't see that it would keep any stock in or out.
It grows stronger over time but yes, you probably need a temporary wire fence or something like that the first year or two. You also want a different pattern with stems about 1.5 times the length of the fence's height planted at a 45 degree angle and interwoven with each other. Hanna Van Aelst has a few good videos showing this technique.
There are a few things to keep in mind if you want to use willow fences at farm, some positive, some negative and some can be either.
+ Willow leaves seem to be good food for the livestock. You can let the animals simply graze on the fence and you can cut all the year's new sprouts in late autumn and feed them to them. (From a nutritional point of view, willow leaves are also perfectly good food for humans but they may not taste that good.)
+ Willows have wide and shallow root systems. You don't want them along fields you are going to plow and probably not too close to buildings either.
+ Willows can be rather thirsty and probably not good in a dry climate.
+ Rather obvious but important to remember: Any living fence/field hedge is permanent(ish). They can make a lot of sense for barriers that are supposed to stand a few years - or even decades - but not for temporary fencing.
+ When it comes to maintenance, the challenge with living fences is exactly the opposite of "dead" ones. Regular fences deteriorate and need to be repaired and replaced regularly. Living fences grow and need to be cut down to keep them from becoming to overwhelming. When it comes to willows, you want to pollard them agressively: cut down all the year's new sprouts in late autumn or during winter.
+ A willow fence can offer a couple of options for a little bit of extra income to your farm. Whether these are worth exploiting depends on so many factors so each farmer will have to decide for themselves. The leaves can be used as animal feed (as I already mentioned), stems can be sold to basket weavers and of course, everything you cut off can be used as firewood. Anything you cut off can be used for composting too but as I'm sure you know, you have to be careful with wood in compost; a little bit is good but add too much and your plants will die from potassium OD.
What species of willow works best for these live fences? I’d love to start one.
Iv just used my willow from the land but any willow you can do this really
How tall could you make this?
Would this work for animals or will they eat it?
Really useful cheers
Update of the great fence this year? 🙏
That's the plan! 👌👌
Willows turn into massive trunks. What will your fence look lik in 20 years? One massive block of wood?
🤞
Wish to have that here in Philippines
I'm sure u have a tree that would work the same 👍
At what distance can I plant the trees? I have 10 I want to fence.
Wow !
Thanks for the video. I'm thinking about putting in living Willow fencing at the back of my garden where it is at the end of a street that is a bit of a wind tunnel will it be strong enough not to get blown over or does it need concreted in fence posts to support it?
Should be fine but u might need to tue it all together more with some hemp rope or something so the structure does wiggle free in the wind
where can I buy willow
What is the name of this tree friend
Both
😢I am the Philippines 79 year old. Could you please send me a seed or any part available to plant
what is live fence in your country?
I wonder if there was coppice culture in what is now the USA, or if colonials brought it with them. I'm delighted to see it in use and by young people at that!
Thanks and God bless you and your family
What kind of willow do you plant?
I'm not sure, it's just the willow that isnt wheeping or cracking willows as reference to round here
😎
👌
👍
ace
definitely hedge. ridiculous
Both!