Establishment and Maintenance of Living Structures Made of Willow (Salix) Stems

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Figure 1.
A portfolio of modules of living structures made of willow stems developed during the study.
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Figure 2.
The “Children’s Mini-Village” integrated six modules into a more complex environment.
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Figure 3.
Planted April 2006; photo taken August 2007. Fourteen months were required for the best visual appeal.
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Figure 4.
Weaving (left) and pruning (right) resulted in different appearances of the same module.

Table 1.

The major operations undertaken for installation and maintenance of living structures made of willow (Salix) stems.

Year	Season	Activity
0	Fall	Site preparation: weed control and lawn installation
1	Spring	Planting, mulching, and watering
1	Summer	Watering, fertilization, mowing, weaving or pruning in August
2	Spring	Fertilization
2	Summer	Mowing, pruning once a month in June, July, and August

Table 2.

The suitability of Salix taxa for living structures made of willow stems.

Salix species and clones	Suitability	Limitations
S × 64 (S. miyabeana)	Suitable	No apparent problems
S × 67 (S. miyabeana)	Suitable	No apparent problems
S × SV1 (S. dasyclados)	Suitable	Susceptible to Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica)
S × 61 (S. udensis)	Suitable for modules without deep bending	Less flexible stems
Basket willow (S. viminalis)	Not suitable	Susceptible to the potato leafhopper (Empoasca fabae)
White willow (S. alba) and S. alba ‘Vitellina’ and ‘Britzensis’	Limited visual appeal in late summer	Susceptible to willow tar spot (Rhytisma salicinum)