>>16341579
Anon there is a lot of benefits in eillow trees
A willow might not be an obvious pick for your block, but it certainly could be the most ingenious.
Words Jane Wrigglesworth
-
Willow makes great animal fodder
It’s highly palatable, and organic-matter digestibility is around 60-65%, similar to normal, grassland summer pasture.
It’s terrific in times of drought. Trials by Massey University showed an improved lambing percentage for stock fed on willow (and poplar) forage compared with stock fed on drought pasture alone, which is why it often forms part of a drought resilience plan on larger farms
The foliage contains high levels of zinc and magnesium – important minerals for animal health – and secondary chemicals called condensed tannins, which increase ovulation rates and protein utilisation from forage.
Willows are also useful for controlling erosion on slopes, gullies and riverbanks, as their fibrous root systems help anchor the soil in place. They can help purify contaminated soils, sequester carbon in belowground biomass, minimise nutrient leach and, because they are thirsty trees, can help de-saturate waterlogged land.
If your site gets hammered by wind, you might want to consider a willow shelterbelt. Wind is one of the main factors in determining the microclimate of a site, and wind chill or root rock can be a problem for a number of useful crops. Willows can also be useful when planted as a buffer zone between homes and growing zones and sources of air and noise pollution.
-
Your plant cuttings may benefit
Willow contains indolebutyric and salicylic acids, both plant hormones that can help improve the strike rate of cuttings.
Indolebutyric acid stimulates plant cell growth and root development and salicylic acid helps prevent pathogen growth, so it just might stop bacteria and fungi from infecting your cuttings.
An effective way of capturing these hormones for use on other plants is to make ‘willow water’. Use the tips of the willow where fresh growth is evident as this is where the hormones are most concentrated…..
“I love working with willow for its suppleness and in many cases, the richness of colour in new growth from russet to apple green, that other materials such as vine prunings don’t offer,” says Lynne….
Plus my mom used to cut willow new branches for using as a switch for us children, because they didnt break.
never break anon
https://thisnzlife.co.nz/why-willows-are-a-flexible-tree-choice-growing-willows-for-animal-fodder-weaving-with-willows-how-to-coppice-willow/