101 things to do with willows

There are perhaps grander trees than willows and certainly many others with superior timber. But with willows you get a bit of everything. The usefulness of willows owes a great deal to their long, straight, slender, supple but strong shoots which make them perfect for basketry, weaving and other traditional crafts. Many activities such as living sculptures and screens would be impossible but for their ability to grow from cuttings and to produce rapid growth following the seemingly brutal cutting back as coppice and pollards. Other uses of willow such as cricket bats benefit from the light weight and strength of the timber which can withstand hard knocks without splintering.

If you are inspired by this site then you should read our willow activity pages and have a go yourself. The things you can do with willow are very wide ranging and there are activities falling into eight broad themes:

We want this to be a great resource for schools and welcome feedback from teachers. Many of the activities should be doable with just a small amount of willow – even the smallest playground or garden would have enough space to grow sufficient to do these activities year after year.

Some activities will require a single willow species whilst some can only be practised where they occur naturally in the wild. You won’t need to be an expert botanist though as you’ll be able to source all the willows mentioned from the Wondertree nursery.

Each month several activities will be added to the site. Sign up to our newsletter and you will find out “what’s new”. You’ll soon realise just how versatile willows are and will be able to show off your endeavours to your family and friends. These activities will provide you with all sorts of ideas for thoughtful and sustainable gifts and get you back in touch with nature. It’s no wonder we call willow the Wonder Tree!

We have launched a project in conjunction with the Royal Horticultural Society to demonstrate how willows can be planted in imaginative designs and then cropped each year to produce a renewable resource for art and craft projects or materials for your allotment garden. You can buy willow cuttings and choose a design