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living willow fence - hedges as fences ... | (Read 625 times) |
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paul wheaton
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Posts: 1342
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February 11, 2008, 02:43:11 PM |
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I was just looking at the latest permaculture magazine. In it, there is a picture of a "living willow fence". The picture is rather small.
It looks like it could be more like a hedge.
The little willows were all rather close together. And there were a lot of them.
But I wonder ..... would it be strictly ornamental? Would it grow so thick that some of the willows would die?
Could something like that contain pigs?
Keep out deer?
And what about something similar for areas with less moisture and colder winters?
Anybody have experience with this sort of thing?
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alexisavoire
Posts: 120
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March 10, 2008, 05:54:06 PM |
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Willows planted tightly together intertwine to a degree that can form a natural barrier. Overlap and "braid" young growth togehter and willows are pretty happy developing to full size that close together. At full growth the willows remain intertwined. Takes awhile to get them tight enough though. Should work for pigs. Deer like young willow but should be difficult for them to pass a willow barrier. Planting along a mesh fence to start can help attain the tightness needed. Some interesting websites on English countryside hedgerows. Different growth but same methods for starting and training.
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MJ Solaro
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Posts: 131
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March 11, 2008, 10:43:25 AM |
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Very cool idea! Did it look something like this?
Here's one how-to resource on how to make a living willow fence (also known as a willow "fedge"): http://www.mastergardenproducts.com/gardenerscorner/livingwillowfence.htm
Reading about it online says that it probably wouldn't be effective keeping out deer, at least not for the first decade anyway. Deer love to munch on young willow and would graze it to the ground...
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Charley Hoke
Posts: 66
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July 23, 2008, 05:56:34 PM |
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Slaps self on forehead! Why didn't I think of that?
The only challenge I see with blackberries is that after this years canes produce berries they will die, however if they are planted thick enough they just might work.
Years ago I had an Osage Orange bush where I lived. This guy had very long and very sharp thorns. I did some research and found that during colonial times this was planted an a natural fence for cattle. Not sure how it would do in colder climates.
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paul wheaton
Administrator
Posts: 1342
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July 24, 2008, 11:25:54 AM |
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I think blackberries would not do well with goats, deer or pigs. They would eat the canes, or burrow through the thorns. Plus, I think blackberries shoot out a new cane every year and last year's cane dies back (I could be mistaken about this), so holes in the fence could form from year to year.
I think this is one of those areas where it would be great to hear from some folks that have real experience with this.
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kelda
Posts: 265
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August 23, 2008, 08:38:19 AM |
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blackberry: i think the second year canes do die off, or if not that, at least the third years. All that dry stick, poky stuff that makes a blackberry bush pile higher and higher every year. But that's still a deterrent to full on passage through for bigger animals. The only drawback is that if the young canes are always being munched than the inner dead stuff will lack protection and eventually start to break down.
It would be a great way to reclaim a blackberry wildland into a forest garden, etc. Clear enough for it to hold pigs, and see if they push that edge a bit further back every year.
Goats I agree would change that landscape fast enough to escape, would need an additional fence.
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permaculture.dave
Posts: 113
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September 17, 2008, 04:12:13 PM |
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Living willow could be effectively used to keep critters in. When you plant willows close to one another and twine them together they will actually graft into one another. We had a living willow shelter here at the Bullocks that failed due to a beaver. However, you can see from the remnants that the remaining willows have formed a dense ring almost as good as a wall.
Surely, you won't be able to put animals in it terribly soon, but willows started like the picture above and protected from deer until they were above browse height would make a great enclosure.
This summer we went back to our beaver damaged structure and pollarded all the willows so we could start the weaving process anew. Some of the trunk diameters were as much as 8-10 inches and in spots they formed almost a solid wall.
Also, another idea that Doug saw in Poland was a livestock enclosure made from wattle (google "wattle fencing" for some pics). The people were planting fast-growing trees about 6 - 8 feet apart and letting them grow for a few years. Then, once the trees were about 4-6 inches dbh, they would lop of the tops at about 7 feet. They would take the tops and use them to weave between the trees to create the fencing. Every year they would go out and pollard the trees (that's coppicing up high instead of at ground level) and use the trimmings as the actual fence material. That way you have living fence posts and an unending supply of new wattle to add as the old wattles break down.
I think using biological solutions for fencing is a great idea, even if they take a while to establish. You can always run electric fencing just inside the establishing system until it is fully functional.
Daver
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permaculture.dave
Posts: 113
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September 27, 2008, 01:44:23 PM |
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If you mean eat the bark, I've never seen it. However, if you're referring to antler rub, that could be a problem when they're young. Deer like to rub the velvet off their antlers on saplings. However, if you protect your willows from the deer until they're well on their way to becoming a wall you should be fine. What deer don't like is getting their antlers tangled in things. Thus they tend to rub on stems that are accessible for them (single trunks out in the open). When things are growing densely they don't tend to rub much. Your living willow fence would, by it's very nature, be very dense and tangled.
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Pages: [1]
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). I thought deer might too. Hopefully the deer population wouldn't encourage it. But there is always venison!
