How to Make a Willow Wigwam
Carol & Dave from Cornish Willow show us how to make a willow wigwam.
Making a Willow Wigwam
Winter is an ideal time to harvest materials such as sticks and willow weavers, which will be useful to use during the growing season in the garden. Whether you have enough room to grow a crop of your own or are able to harvest them somewhere else, it is very satisfying to be able to make your own plant supports and wigwams without having to rely on imported bamboo canes.
MATERIALS
The best materials for upright sticks are either willow or hazel – up to a diameter of 5cm (2in), and ideally as long as you can get them. Hazel is slower growing and makes for a strong upright stick, but thick willow sticks are fine too. For weavers, a supply of flexible willow rods (one year’s growth) would be ideal – 120–150cm (4–5ft) in length.
HARVESTING
Cutting wood on a rotational basis is called coppicing, and this is an age-old, traditional method of managing woodland. Using this method will ensure a renewable, regenerating crop of wood for generations to come. Materials can be cut during the winter months after the leaves have dropped and before the buds start to break in the spring. Using loppers, a billhook or secateurs, cut the sticks and weavers close to the base of the plant. This will encourage new growth in the spring. Always get permission from landowners before harvesting any materials, but if you have trouble finding materials you can buy them from willow growers and coppice workers (see Useful Contacts below).
PREPARATION OF MATERIALS
When freshly cut, the weavers and sticks are ‘green’. Weavers then need a few weeks to dry a little before they are ready to use. If you are using ‘green’ willow sticks for the uprights they will be likely to root when put in the ground. For this reason I often use dry sticks that have been cut the previous year for the uprights, and ‘green’ weavers to do the spiral weaving. By pointing the ends of ‘green’ sticks you are taking the bark off and this will prevent them from rooting, or you can dip the ends in boiling water.
Alternatively, you can use brown (or dry) willow for both the uprights and weavers. In this case the weavers will need soaking beforehand in cold water. Soaking for up to five or six days will be necessary for 120–150cm (4–5ft) rods before they are flexible enough to weave with. To test that the willow is ready, bend it at the thick end (this is called the ‘butt’ and the thin end of the rod is called the ‘tip’) and it should bend at 90 degrees without the bark splitting. Soaked willow can be kept wrapped in a damp cloth and should be used within five days.
MAKING THE WIGWAM
I use a wooden jig to make wigwams. This is a wooden disc with holes drilled to space the uprights. This enables me to make a variety of sizes. For a typical ‘runner bean’ wigwam I find that a diameter of 50cm (20in) with twelve uprights is ideal.
METHOD
1 Select twelve upright sticks. If they are bent they can be straightened by counter-bending them over your knee. A basket-maker’s bodkin tool, called a rapping iron, often has a ring on the end which can help with this.
Step 1
2 I like to point the ends of the sticks, and use a shave horse and draw-knife to do this. If you don’t have this equipment, then you can do it with an ordinary sharp knife, but it can be quite hard on your hands.
Step 2
3 Place the pointed ends of the uprights in the holes on the jig and secure the top of the sticks with string.
Step 3
4 Before you begin to weave, remember that the thin end of the rod is called the ‘tip’ and the thick end is the ‘butt’. To start weaving, take two weavers and overlap them at the tip ends (by about 30cm (12in)), so that you have a long, continuous length of willow. Hook one end around the back of an upright so that you will have half of the weaver coming out of one gap between uprights and the other coming out of the next gap.
Step 4
5 The weaving is done anticlockwise around the wigwam, and this involves weaving to your right. If you are left-handed you might want to reverse this process, but try it both ways and do whatever suits you. The weave is called ‘pairing’, and the left-hand weaver goes in front of the upright to its right, behind the next one and comes out of the next gap. The other weaver, which is now on the left, does the same, so you alternate each one as you progress around the wigwam to form the pairing.
Step 5
6 The first row will be the most difficult, as you must keep the row straight. Once you have started the pairing, add a new weaver in each gap so that you build up a bunch of rods to weave with. Join in with the butt ends; they should go in between the pairing and lodge behind an upright to keep them secure. Before each left-hand weaver does its work, insert a new weaver to join it by lodging the butt of the new weaver in the gap between the pairing and behind the upright behind which the weaver has just gone. This will ensure that the weaving is strong and holds the wigwam together. Keep adding in weavers so that the two weaving bunches are an even thickness.
Step 6
7 Having completed the first round, carry on with a second round before you start to spiral. This will ensure that the base is strong. Now, when you add in new weavers, poke the butts up into the pairing of the first round so that they lock the two rounds together.
Step 7
8 As you complete the second round, make sure you have enough weavers in each bunch to form a thick band of pairing. I usually join in two longish weavers just before I start to spiral. As you pass the original start point, gradually spiral your weaving up, keeping the angle low at this stage because if you come up too quickly your plant support will not be very strong.
Step 8
9 Keep spiralling up the wigwam, adding in new weavers as necessary to keep even bunches for weaving. The further up the wigwam you come, the thinner the sticks will be, so you can thin down your weaving bunches accordingly. Keep an eye on the shape by occasionally standing back to make sure it isn’t leaning over. You can always retie the string if the shape needs adjusting.
Step 9a
Step 9b
10 When you reach the top of your wigwam it will be hard to weave between the uprights, so undo the string as you reach the top to help weave behind the sticks.
Step 10
11 At the top of the wigwam, hold the weavers and tops of the sticks together to form a point. I use a potato bag wire tie at the top to keep them secure and then cover this with a wrap of willow.
Step 11
12 To do a willow wrap, use a thin, flexible weaver. Hold the rod with the butt pointing upwards and tightly wrap from the bottom up to secure the willow in place. Keep it tight and don’t let go otherwise it will unravel. Tuck the tip of the weaver downward, underneath the wrap, and then pull tight.
Step 12
13 Trim any butt ends so that they rest against the inside of an upright. Also, trim or tuck in any loose ends which may stick out.
AFTERCARE
Your plant support is best used during the summer months only. You can give it an annual coat of wood preservative to prolong its lifespan; I use Cuprinol clear, but a traditional method is an equal mix of linseed oil and turpentine. Store your plant support indoors during the winter months and it should give you several years of good service. I also like to fix it to a stake driven into the ground, because when it is full of beans it can get top-heavy and may blow over in summer gales.
USEFUL CONTACTS
www.cornishwillow.co.uk Tel 01566 782626
Carol Horsington and Dave Taylor farm on the edge of Bodmin Moor in Cornwall. Carol is also a basket-maker and runs courses on basket-making, growing willow, plant supports and edging hurdles. She also sells the finished products.
Details of willow courses and willow growers are included on this site.
Find your local beanpole day to buy materials.
RECOMMENDED READING
Cane, Rush and Willow – Weaving with natural materials by Hilary Burns.
Although not in print now, if you can find a copy there is a chapter with instructions on making the wooden jig and a simple plant support. Try your local library.
Source: www.homefarmer.co.uk
