willow fodder block

[Emily Macdonald]

Can anyone share experiences with willow fodder for sheep?  What cultivars did you use? Good sources for obtaining cuttings? What density did you plant?  How did it work out? Did the sheep like it?

Thank you !

[Erica Frenay]

Hi Emily! I just planted a willow fodder block for my sheep last Spring, and am adding more density to it this year (and probably for the next few years, as I figure out how dense I want it to be.

I'm sorry to say I don't have answers for your questions, just more questions of my own. My fodder block is not entirely willow; it's got poplar and amorpha fruticosa (river locust) in it too, and my plan is to run a brush mower over it each year to keep it below 6' height. Most likely each time i brush mow it, I'll stick those cuttings right back in the ground to add density. Some won't take, but enough will over time.

I'd love to share notes with you! Have you planted fodder for sheep?

[Emily Macdonald]

Hi Erica,

Not yet, but we are planning to do so if we receive funding from a grant. The idea is to plant willow, mulberry, and American hazel in hedges or blocks that can be browsed by sheep periodically. Like you, we would coppice the shrubs on rotation and allow them to resprout. I know  providing browse for sheep is frequently done, especially in other parts of the world,  but I don't know anybody growing sheep that way and am short on details.

Good luck with your project. If we get ours underway next spring, I'd love to share notes!

[Jane Hammer]

Hi Erica, Emily,

I have been helping out with a grant funded project here in NE Massachusetts established pasture, planting all willow blocks (along renewed agriculture ditches) intended first for beef cattle fodder/enhanced insect and bird habitat/living fence around the waterways.  Sheep may also be involved at some point, but that's on hold probably at least through 2025 season.  This is part of a non-profit farm with an educational and production emphasis. We are in the very early phase, having just started in Dec. 2023 establishing 400 feet x 3 rows x 2 streambanks x 4 sites (4 species of native willow, 3 different planting methods), monitoring for success and impact.  We will be sharing out reports at the end of the 3 years (2026 spring), and also are learning as much as we can as we go.  I am helping to draft a management and fodder harvest plan--so I would also love to swap notes and discuss!

[Erica Frenay]

Thanks Jane! Really fascinating to learn what you've been working on, and I am very much looking forward to hearing your results. In addition to farming, I work part-time for the Cornell Small Farms Program and am always looking for stories about silvopasture that we can share in our Small Farm Quarterly magazine. Maybe this could become an article in 2026? In the meantime, I'll make a note to check in next Spring on how things are looking with your plantings. The scale you're implementing is much larger than what I'm trying on my farm!

[Joanne Vaughn]

We have been working on it for several years now. We have had a lot of trouble getting willows started. Seems like every Tom, Dick and Harry wants to eat them, pull them out of the ground etc.  I have one now under surveillance on my porch in a pot. We have about a dozen starters in a fenced area where deer willl not jump into. I advise a lot of protection for any planting project.