Never see growing willow for weaving and think that it’s cut from the willow tree. Maybe this kind of question always comes into your mind. The willows are the same or have some differences? how fast does it grow? we will tell u more below.
Most People like antique wicker baskets and attracted by its rustic, natural, durable, eco-friendly, practical, etc. In the beginning, wicker baskets are made out of wicker(wicker trig). As the market demands and development, more and more material are used to weave baskets: seagrass, grapevine, rattan, reed, cotton rope, banana leaf, bark, etc. but we still called them wicker baskets. Speaking from the material, they are not wicker twining basketry.
So now it already becomes a general name but not only refers to the material—willow
Anyway, come back to the growing willow and willow tree.
willow trees are around us everywhere, a nearby river, road, etc. they have stubborn vitality to grow naturally in the ground. No need to be specially planted like wheat or corn. It grows very fast: one or two years it could grow to be a weeping willow tree with many branches, during the whole growing period, we do not need any special management, it grows naturally.
If taking weaving basket as an interest, it’s practical to cut the trig from the willow tree. if we want to weave in bulk and take weave basket as a trade, it’s impossible to cut from the tree.
 The basketry willow varieties are shrub willow. So the farmers began to plant large-scale shrub willow to meet business market needs.
our hometown–linshu county is known for weaving wicker baskets. Most of our local people have skills in weaving baskets, they are worthy of the experienced artisans. You could see wicker planting is in our farmland everywhere as bellowing:
Willow, like other crops, is cultivated in spring, and cut in summer or before coming of Chinese New Year. the dwarf willow bush grows very fast, one or two times cutting in one whole year. In the coming of spring, people cut down bounds of fresh willow roots, (yes, it should be fresh willow roots with 20cm long and 2-3 branches on each root). Farmers bury about 10cm into the soil, left is on the surface.
In the beginning, every fresh root sprout 2-5 long twigs. it grows to 1.5m-2.0 meters when summer coming. Yes, it’s a happy time, harvest time also cutting time, this is the first cutting of the year.
Here, you could cut two times in one year—summer and winter, or one-time cutting on summer season. It depends: if you want a long willow, it grows a long time. if not, you could cut two times. It also needs to spray some insecticide to avoid the insect and make it grows better during the whole growing time,
Our local people are not simple farmers but also experienced craftsmen. They are living by not only planting shrub willow tree but weaving baskets. We love our hometown, love our land, love our life. If you are interested in our willow tree basket, welcome to visit our factory.
Welcome to leave a message, if you have some puzzle in planting shrub willow or weaving baskets,
