The Willow Harvest

Follow along with this year's willow harvest with craft demonstrator Bob Johnston.

Traditionally in Ulster, in every town there would have been somebody growing willow.

Bob Johnston, craft demonstrator and willow weaving extraordinaire, has been continuing this tradition. Join him as he harvests the willow at the Folk Museum, and as he gets ready for another busy season.

Willow in Northern Ireland

In the past, people would use plant material that was indigenous to their area for basket weaving. Their raw material had to be essentially free. In Ireland, that happened to be willow.

Traditionally in Ireland, in every town, there would have been somebody growing some willow. They may have grown it and sold it as a crop to makers, or they may have used it themselves. Basket weaving would have been a traditional skill passed down through the generations.

Willow is a very easy crop to grow, and it thrives in Northern Ireland. This is because of the cool, moist climate and abundance of water. Willow needs a constant supply of water during the growing season, and prefers moist, well-drained soil.

Willow will grow almost anywhere in Northern Ireland. If you placed a 12-inch cutting into the ground, it would self-root and grow. After the first harvest, willow can be harvested annually for 30-60 years.

Willow harvest in the field — The willow field at the Folk Museum, ready to be harvested.

Cut willow in the field — Some of the stumps show where the willow has been harvested.

Willow growing in the field — We have over 10 varieties of willow in our fields.

Harvesting the Willow

Willow harvesting involves cutting willow stems after the leaves fall and before the buds swell. It's usually done during the dormant season in winter, from mid-October to early March. Bob begins this harvest in January.

Bob cuts the base of the willow with sharp pruning shears and roughly piles the willow into groups of the same species and thickness.

The willow is very fast growing, and will grow again to be harvested next year.

Bob ties the rough piles of willow and sets them to the side of the field, ready to be delivered to his workshop for the next stage of the process.

Stump of willow — Willow is cut at the base - it will regrow next year.

Harvested willow — Freshly harvested willow, ready to be brought back to the workshop.

Harvested willow with knot — Bob bundles the harvest using a knot made of willow.

Explore Bob's Work

Craft demonstrator Bob Johnston has been creating traditional and contemporary willow baskets, sculptures and structures since 2000. Initially trained as a textile weaver, Bob has since studied with master basket makers in Armagh, Galway and Villaines les Rochers, France.

The Willow Workshop

Once the fields are harvested of willow, the bundles are brought back to Bob's workshop. Bob’s workshop was designed specifically for the craft of willow making. The workshop was built before Bob’s time, but it was based on basket makers' workshops from the shores of Loch Neagh.

Bob grading willow in his workshop — Bob's workshop where he sorts and grades the willow. He also makes baskets and sculptures here.

Bob harvests around ten varieties of willow at the Folk Museum. The difference in these varieties can be seen in their colours and size.

Once harvested, Bob has to sort through the branches to to remove things like grass, weeds, and nettles. After removing the debris, the willow is broken down into different sizes. This makes it a lot easier to use throughout the rest of the year.

Bob sorts the willow into bundles that are the same height, from nine foot down to three foot. He stands the willow in a barrel and brings it away in one foot increments.

Traditionally, people would have sunk the barrel into the ground to make it easier to reach the taller branches.

Measuring willow chart — Bob's chart used for grading and sorting the willow by size.

Bob sorts the willow — Bob sorts through the harvested willow, grading it by size and thickness.

Willow dries out in the rafters — Once the willow has been sorted by size, it dries in the rafters for six months.

Working with Willow

Once the willow is graded, finished and bundled, it sits outside for a couple of weeks. It is then brought in and stored in the rafters where there is good ventilation and drying space. If the space isn’t well ventilated, the willow wouldn’t have the chance to dry and would become mouldy.

When the willow is first harvested, it is quite puffy because it still has a lot of sap in it. As that sap dries, the rod shrinks. Bob tries to get the shrinkage out of the willow before he works with it, otherwise the structure will loosen over time. If a basket was made with half-fresh willow and was brought inside a warm house, the basket could lose its form. To get a better result and finish, the willow is completely dried out for about six months.

Once the willow is dried, it loses its flexibility, so it has to be re-soaked before it is able to be woven. The willow absorbs moisture and becomes flexible, meaning it can be bent without breaking.

Willow outside Bob's workshop — The completed bundles of graded willow sit outside Bob's workshop.

Graded willow by size — The willow is graded by size and thickness.

Different colours of willow — At the Folk Museum, we grow over 10 varieties of willow.

The soaking time varies according to the size and thickness of the branch. Depending on the size of the willow and the weather conditions, some willow could take three weeks to soak. The smaller branches sometimes take only a few days to soak.

Working with willow requires careful planning. Willow grows very fast, and a weaver must always have a continuous supply of ready material. Sometimes this means working three to four weeks in advance. Getting the willow properly graded and soaked is paramount to the willow being usable. Bob admits that while this does seem like quite a slow, repetitive process, it's one of his most important tasks in the whole year.