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Call for questions: WILLOWS (Patreon)

Published:
2026-08-07 21:43:19
Edited:
2026-08-10 23:41:44
Imported:

Content

They're trees, they're shrubs, and they're featured in the movies Obsession and Wicker: WILLOWS. They're also the traditional gift for 9-year anniversaries, which Ologies will be celebrating in September. Let's get into willows! Got any questions? We'll likely focus on the uses of willows in crafting, manufacturing, and horticulture.

BONUS: If you could ask Willow Smith one question, what would it be?

⚠️ Deadline: Monday, August 10 at noon PST

⚠️ QUESTIONS ARE CLOSED

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Comments

brucatini

why is it so difficult to tell different species apart when they’re in winter twig form?? so much harder than other trees!

brucatini

also what are tannins and why do willows have so much of them? are they safe for livestock to eat?

Brooke Legg

Why do the branches and leaves on Willow trees grow the way they do as opposed to most other tree types? What makes them feel so mystical? Why do I feel more connected to the earth and myself when sitting under them?

Storm

how come willow is becoming a popular name?

Diane Harlow Burbank

I just saw a willow wicker casket and they are so beautiful! How do they make them? Who makes them? Are they made in the US or only in the UK? I want one!!

Lauren Harter

Does willow bark tea really work to ease pain? Why do other trees not grow from cuttings, what makes willows so special? Are some species better for wicker than others?

Michelle Volk

How far must a willow be planted from a house so that it doesn’t grow into the water pipes?

Alice Munn

Willow Smith, if you were a tree would you whip your leaves back and forth?

Anastasia Press

I've recently been getting into native gardening, and I was surpised to learn that in my area, willows are the host plant for the largest number of lepidoptera! Can you explain what makes willows good host plants?

Karen Seidler

How do I keep the deer from eating my little Willow bush

BENJAMIN

How big can they get??! A giant one would be MAGICAL!! Are there any extinct kind that were magnificent?

Jennifer zheng

Hi, first time question asker! Willows are such beautiful trees. My mom told me that there’s folklore that willow trees catch the ghosts and the spirits dwell inside them, is there such folklore? Can they still haunt you if the willow is no longer weeping?

Marc Rubin

Does the ologist know why the snowpack around willows tends to be an unconsolidated nightmare of post-hole drudgery? When I'm on skis or snowshoes, I try to avoid willows like the plague (else I'll very likely sink down to my thighs and have to wade through snow..). Alie, please do an episode on veterinary gerontology with my lovely wife, Dr Ashley Portmann of Home Together Vet!!! https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ8zTA6rVbu/?igsh=eTQzZGpvbHNmYnFt

KayQuimi

Are desert willows actually related to weeping willows, or is it a marketing trick to make us drought-dwelling folks feel better about not having enough water for the "real" willows to thrive?

Abby L :)

Is there an evolutionary advantage to having long hair-like branches that hang down towards the ground vs. the traditional branches most trees have which go upwards and are more sturdy (bonus question: are they still considered branches? Are they a different structure?)

Sarah Chaney

Relation to cottonwoods and poplars? What makes them different?

Syd :)

My house has two huge willows in the back. Whenever there is a big storm they seem to lose a big branches much more frequently than the other trees around. (They’ve claimed a few swing sets, and the neighbors shed) Is that a common willow problem? Or are my two trees just weaker than usual

Arella Zarina

My heart seemed to melt as I whispered in my dark room at midnight "Willows!" I'm wondering about the etymology is this beauty's name is similar to words like hill that are older and come from the first roots of what we call English today.

Arella Zarina

Is it true they grow from even a small cutting? I'm reading a historical book about a family that chose the surname "Willow" at some point, which became simbolically important later because they managed to survive through thick and thin, wars and peace, at home in Latvia and away in hiding. Are there any catches to making them grow? Where is the wisest place to plant a willow to keep it from taking over your garden?

Arella Zarina

What do willows simbolise in different cultures?

J

Literal quote from my plant-y friend last week: "How's your willow identification? You know those two types of willow? Do you know your pussy from your crack?"

AlphabetSoup

First time asker! Please please please explain how willow trees are used in phytoremediation. What are other ecological benefits willow trees have?

Ellie Snowden

Hiding out under the mini weeping willow in my garden as a kid was the tippp-top cosy, secluded den. The branches like nature’s bead curtains. Have people ever utilised this inner space for more long-term living?

Meagan Walker

Are there any species that tolerate dry conditions?

Jill Landry

Water diviners. Is it magic, or flim-flam? Seems like the latter to me, but it is still practiced when searching for water. When did people start using willow trees to do this?

Rob H.

I recently read Buffalo Bird Woman's Garden. Buffalo Bird Woman describes using willow sticks and boughs for all kinds of traditional work. Why was the willow such an important plant to native people on the plains? What properties does the willow have that make it so useful?

Ross Zimmerman

Willows are the well known natural source of salicylic acid, the aspirin precursor. What does it do for the plant, and why do willows have so much?

Gardener Gabbi

What does the ologist think of using willows as a living fence or art? I've seen people plant saplings close together and then weave them to form a beautiful fence, but is it really practical given their short life span, or is it a great way to support wildlife and also make something pretty? (First time question asker)

Arella Zarina

My friend Lucas wanted to ask what the ologist thinks willows would be thinking about if we could hear their thoughts? :D

RoadLesTravelled

I think of willows as wetland trees. But growing up on a New England hilltop my family had two “weeping willows” on the meadow edge. Are willows rhizome propagated? I observed their branches taking root every place they touched ground.

Abby L :)

From my boyfriend: is there anything that biologically differentiates willow trees from other trees?

SAM_THE_SCIENCE_TEACHER

Other than salacin for aspirin, are there any other medications inspired by willows?

Christopher Munt

Kinda hoping this isn’t true, because willows are awesome, but my husband has heard that willows protect mosquitoes from predation…is this anti-willow propaganda?

Bennett Vanderbosch

How did someone figure out the medicinal benefits of willow? When did it start being used to make aspirin?

Jill Landry

Second question. We were always raised to not plant willows next to our homes because the roots will destroy water pipes if it doesn’t have access to an abundance of water. Is this true?

Quill Sloan

I have been wanting to make a hanging willow pod for a while, but I’m not sure what kind of willow is best to weave with and whether it matters what season I harvest it? Also is it strong enough just being willow to hold my weight (100 pounds), or do I need to have a metal base?

Miranda Panda

Can I make a fence with any of our native willows in Portland, Oregon? I did a little bit of research, but the information I see about willow fences uses other types of willows, from what I can find.

Kylie Shay

Do willow trees need to be by a water source? I've heard they do, but I sometimes see them in neighborhoods where there isn't access to water.

Meg Saluga

What made weeping willows evolve to drape their branches downwards instead of up towards the sun like most other trees?

Meg Saluga

How many different species of willows exist and do they grow on every continent?

Plant Pathology 101

When I was an undergrad about 10 years ago I heard there was research being done to grow shrub willows for biofuel; Is that still a thing or has the research moved on?

Brain 🧠 Shenanigans

What applications (building, crafting, etc.) is willow the best for? What should it absolutely not be used for? I would be quick to assume that it’s a softer wood because the branches are so supple. Does the trunk contain a secret surprise, or is it more like balsa wood that’s soft/spongy?

Grae Klein

Why do corkscrew willows grow so much slower than weeping willows?

Daniel Johnson

Ok, my 7 year old daughter, WILLOW, wants to know why is Willow the boss of Willow City? Lol

The Grandmother Hypothesis

Hi, first time question asker!!!! What is with the relationship between beavers and willows?

Arianna Martinez

Their rooting abilities are crazy, does this trait give them a leg up compared to other trees in the environment?

Arianna Martinez

What gives them all their medicinal properties?

Gordon Haas

A local Master Gardener recommends that people dedicate some of their garden space to growing native plants, in particular those that provide food for native caterpillars. This is because native songbirds catch those caterpillars and take them back to their nests to feed their babies. So by growing native plants, we can provide habitat for native butterflies and moths to lay their eggs, which become caterpillars, which the birds feed their babies, yielding more songbirds. She recommended this website from National Wildlife Foundation, which lets you enter your Zip Code to get a list of recommended plants, along with the number of species of native caterpillars that feed on that plant. When I searched, it recommended several species that 60, or 40, or 30 species of caterpillar. When I got to Salix (Willow) species, I was told they host 312 species! Is this tue for a lot of places? Will growing Willows boost native songbird populations? https://nativeplantfinder.nwf.org/