Weaving a Willow Plant Support for Climbing Beans

Why willow makes the best bean poles

There is something deeply satisfying about growing your bean supports out of a hedge you cut yourself. Bamboo canes do the job, but they rattle, snap in an autumn gale and look faintly municipal. A woven willow obelisk is sturdy, weathers to a soft grey, and costs nothing but an afternoon's work. Willow is springy, strong and bends without cracking, which is exactly what you want from a weaving material. Best of all, a mature willow stool will give you a fresh crop of rods every winter for decades.

The traditional weaving willows are common osier (Salix viminalis), almond willow (Salix triandra) and purple willow (Salix purpurea). But almost any willow will do — even the prunings from a pollarded goat willow in the hedge. If you have no willow at all, ask a neighbour, or keep an eye out for roadside coppicing in January.

Cutting and preparing your rods

Cut willow between late November and early March, while the sap is down and the leaves are off. Look for rods of last year's growth: straight, whippy and about the thickness of a pencil at the base. You want lengths of 1.8m to 2.4m for an obelisk, with a few shorter ones for the weaving bands.

• Cut cleanly at an angle, close to the stool, and leave the stool itself undamaged.
• Sort by length into bundles as you cut, so you are not rummaging later.
• Use them fresh if possible — freshly cut rods bend beautifully and need no soaking.
• If stored, keep them dry and out of the sun; soak dried rods in a water butt for three to five days before weaving.

One warning worth heeding: willow is one of the easiest trees in Britain to root from a cutting. Fresh rods will happily sprout leaves and roots. Either weave in winter and let the obelisk dry out thoroughly before spring, or simply rub off any shoots that appear. A dry, sunny spot helps.

Setting out the frame

Choose your spot first — beans want sun and shelter, and once the obelisk is planted it is not moving. Push eight long rods into the ground in a circle about 45cm across, spacing them evenly. Sink each one 20cm deep and firm the soil back around it. Lean them inwards so the tops meet.

Now gather the tops together, a little above head height, and bind them firmly with twine or a thin, softened willow withy. You should now have an upside-down cone — a frame ready to be woven. Check it stands straight; a wonky base makes the whole thing look drunk by August.

The weave, step by step

Take a weaving rod and push its thick end down alongside one of the uprights, close to the ground.

• Weave over and under the uprights in turn — over one, under the next, all the way round.
• Keep it level as you go, and push each pass down firmly so the band sits tight.
• Add a new rod when you run out, tucking its butt end in beside the previous tip and carrying on as if nothing happened.
• Space the bands about 20cm apart at the base, closing to 12–15cm towards the top where the beans bunch.

Work your way up the obelisk, then finish by tucking the last tip behind an upright. Aim for eight to ten bands on a 2m frame. Do not worry if it looks slightly rustic — a bit of wobble is part of the charm, and the beans will hide most of it by midsummer.

Tying in the top and planting out

Once the frame is woven, tie the top firmly again to stop the whole structure splaying under the weight of a good crop. Push a stout stake or a length of hazel through the centre and into the ground if your site is exposed; the obelisk itself is flexible, and a little internal bracing makes a big difference in wind.

Sow or plant your beans at the base — French beans, runner beans and sweet peas all take to it happily. Put three or four plants around the outside and let them find their own way up; they rarely need tying in, though a little guidance in the first fortnight helps. Water well while they establish, and keep an eye on slugs, which relish the cool, damp shade at the foot of a woven frame.

Getting more than one season from it

A well-made willow obelisk will last two to four years outdoors, longer if you lift it into a dry shed over winter. At the end of the season, cut the haulms down, clear the frame and store it under cover if you can. When a rod finally snaps, do not bin the lot — pull out the broken piece and weave a fresh one in.

Better still, cut a few extra rods each January and keep them in a dry bundle. Then every winter you can repair, extend or build a new obelisk for the price of a walk round the plot. That is smallholding at its best: a useful thing, made from a by-product, that improves with every year you do it.