Me again! With more tree questions!

[SpotsandBays]

Ok talk to me!!
Been doing some reading about willow, and how it can be grown and made into like gazebos and “dens” etc.
Am I mad in thinking that it would be cool to grow a horse shelter? (More like a shady place for the summer months rather than protection from rain, and obviously it will take some time and maintenance!). Has anybody seen or done something like this?

I’m going to play around with cuttings in pots for fun anyway, but my brain pops up questions that need answers ?
Thanks!

 

[!CobsCan!]

I have no advice but this sounds awesome!!

 

[milliepops]

be Ok so long as they didn't just chomp it up

 

[Not_so_brave_anymore]

Sounds like a very elaborate snack buffet to me.... ?

 

[SpotsandBays]

So I was reading and it is safe for horses to eat, it’s a natural aspirin apparently!! It would be frustrating but funny if they ate it ?

 

[Not_so_brave_anymore]

Fwiw I love willow- its my dream to have an enormous established willow, and the ponies would be able to nibble the lowest branches without compromising the whole tree. But can I face 5+ years of electric tape (and do I have the patience) to achieve this.... ?

 

[MissTyc]

Willow is very easy to work with and we use a lot of it for landscaping. However, we do need to keep it well out of reach of the horses as they gobble it down. Possibly they'd leave the stems of a very mature plant, but anything in each of horses has never made it to the age where this theory could be tested. It's very good for them, though, and willow bare roots are super easy to start off and have fun with! They'd probably just eat their shelter

 

[SpotsandBays]

Willow is very easy to work with and we use a lot of it for landscaping. However, we do need to keep it well out of reach of the horses as they gobble it down. Possibly they'd leave the stems of a very mature plant, but anything in each of horses has never made it to the age where this theory could be tested. It's very good for them, though, and willow bare roots are super easy to start off and have fun with! They'd probably just eat their shelter

We have a large old willow tree in the corner of our field, and I haven’t seen any of our horses try to eat it in the time that we’ve been here, so I wonder whether they would! Although typically I bet they will eat it if they see me faffing with it. Might give it a crack anyway ?
Definitely going to have a play with some cuttings though! Google tells me I can pop it straight in the ground, or in a bucket of water until roots form. What would you recommend? (If you don’t mind me asking!!)

 

[cauda equina]

When I was a kid my parents made some fence posts out of big willow branches - about 6' tall.
They rooted with no encouragement at all and turned into trees

 

[SpotsandBays]

When I was a kid my parents made some fence posts out of big willow branches - about 6' tall.
They rooted with no encouragement at all and turned into trees

That’s lovely!!

 

[Tiddlypom]

So I was reading and it is safe for horses to eat, it’s a natural aspirin apparently!! It would be frustrating but funny if they ate it ?

It’s only the garden fence that saves the rest of our weeping willow from the equine pruners...?

 

[teddypops]

Sounds amazing, but my lot would eat it!

 

[Baywonder]

I am no help whatsoever - after reading the heading of this thread, I thought it was going to be a question about saddle trees.....??

 

[SpotsandBays]

Ok, upon further inspection, it looks like my horses have been nibbling at the existing willows!
Might give it a go anyway, it’s free at least!!

 

[twiggy2]

They will est it before it gets a chance to get going, I have always hung large branches up for horses on box rest and I have yet to meet horses that don't eat it given a chance.
It is a natural pain killer, its where aspirin originates and I think from memory it is a cleansing tonic for the gut too bit stand to be corrected on that

 

[SpotsandBays]

They will est it before it gets a chance to get going, I have always hung large branches up for horses on box rest and I have yet to meet horses that don't eat it given a chance.
It is a natural pain killer, its where aspirin originates and I think from memory it is a cleansing tonic for the gut too bit stand to be corrected on that

Oh I will definitely fence it off initially! I’d try and give it a chance before unleashing my greedy lot ?

 

[PurBee]

Ive got a willow fence for my grow area to deter deers.

once you allow it to get established, around 3 years, and annually intertwine new sprouting thin branches into it, leaving the top to get tall out of chewing height, it could work well as a shelter. Although if the horses eat too much of the bark itll possible kill off that stem.
An alternative idea might be to use willow for its bendable-structure, and plant...oh whats that climbing common fencing plant with spikes called...not blackthorn, the one that is safe for horses to eat too, but they dont like it as much as willow?
god my memory!
Anyway, point being, if you plant other climbing safe to eat fencing plants infront of your willow structure, and weave that in too, it’ll be much harder for the horses to get at the willow., preserving the structure.

Google images of willow structures/shelters....its really easy to work with and grows so fast! My fence is insanely thick and tall, within 5 years...4 metres, which i could have weaved into a bent-over roof/canopy.

The pic below is from google.
Its good to use as a long walk-thru arch too, which would shelter animals well.

 

[SpotsandBays]

Ive got a willow fence for my grow area to deter deers.

once you allow it to get established, around 3 years, and annually intertwine new sprouting thin branches into it, leaving the top to get tall out of chewing height, it could work well as a shelter. Although if the horses eat too much of the bark itll possible kill off that stem.
An alternative idea might be to use willow for its bendable-structure, and plant...oh whats that climbing common fencing plant with spikes called...not blackthorn, the one that is safe for horses to eat too, but they dont like it as much as willow?
god my memory!
Anyway, point being, if you plant other climbing safe to eat fencing plants infront of your willow structure, and weave that in too, it’ll be much harder for the horses to get at the willow., preserving the structure.

Google images of willow structures/shelters....its really easy to work with and grows so fast! My fence is insanely thick and tall, within 5 years...4 metres, which i could have weaved into a bent-over roof/canopy.

The pic below is from google.
Its good to use as a long walk-thru arch too, which would shelter animals well.

View attachment 62295

Interesting!! Thanks for the info! Are you thinking of Hawthorne?

 

[Cloball]

Interesting to see how you get on if it works it'll be beautiful. I've seen some impressive willow statues. There's one in Bodnant gardens and one in the Eden festival.

 

[PurBee]

Ye

Interesting!! Thanks for the info! Are you thinking of Hawthorne?

Yes! Thats it! Hawthorn blossoms in spring would make the shelter look amazing!

blackthorn/sloe is good protection but those needles they have are generally an inch and longer, extremely sharp, i wouldnt risk it with horse shenanigans, also im not sure sloes are good for them to eat.

I have rhododendron and laurel hedging in places, and although theyre highly toxic to horses, my horses leave them alone. Even if ‘starving’...without food for an hour...lol...theyve never tried these 2 hedges. I keep them clipped back as they grow fast, but they can, if arching neck, get to them, and i inspect them for nibbles/missing leaves, and theyre completely untouched. So i know i could plant a border of these for mine and theyll ignore it, but for a yard with various horses coming and going , its too risky to use toxic shrubs.

Also youngsters tend to sample everything, so even mildly toxic plants arent wise.

Gorse is another safe spikey bush you could plant infront of the willow. The horses can eat that, takes them ages due to its spikey nature, and they love the young shoots, but wont put their face in it to get to the willow behind. They love plucking off gorse flowers too. Its slower growing than willow but if you clip it you can train it to grow tall.

It would take a while for your structure to really thicken-out and bush-out, but if you start, the yrs soon pass and youll be amazed what it grows into!
You could protect it initially if you want to use it in year 2, by attaching a clear 300gm tarp to the underneath of your structure. The light would get to the underneath, maintaining growth, the rain will run off providing shelter for the horses, and it’ll stop them getting to the young shoots, allowing it to develop and thicken-up.

 

[SpotsandBays]

Ye

Yes! Thats it! Hawthorn blossoms in spring would make the shelter look amazing!

blackthorn/sloe is good protection but those needles they have are generally an inch and longer, extremely sharp, i wouldnt risk it with horse shenanigans, also im not sure sloes are good for them to eat.

I have rhododendron and laurel hedging in places, and although theyre highly toxic to horses, my horses leave them alone. Even if ‘starving’...without food for an hour...lol...theyve never tried these 2 hedges. I keep them clipped back as they grow fast, but they can, if arching neck, get to them, and i inspect them for nibbles/missing leaves, and theyre completely untouched. So i know i could plant a border of these for mine and theyll ignore it, but for a yard with various horses coming and going , its too risky to use toxic shrubs.

Also youngsters tend to sample everything, so even mildly toxic plants arent wise.

Gorse is another safe spikey bush you could plant infront of the willow. The horses can eat that, takes them ages due to its spikey nature, and they love the young shoots, but wont put their face in it to get to the willow behind. They love plucking off gorse flowers too. Its slower growing than willow but if you clip it you can train it to grow tall.

It would take a while for your structure to really thicken-out and bush-out, but if you start, the yrs soon pass and youll be amazed what it grows into!
You could protect it initially if you want to use it in year 2, by attaching a clear 300gm tarp to the underneath of your structure. The light would get to the underneath, maintaining growth, the rain will run off providing shelter for the horses, and it’ll stop them getting to the young shoots, allowing it to develop and thicken-up.

Great thanks! That’s super helpful!!